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Isa Soares Tonight
North Korea's Leader Kim Jong un Arrives In Beijing For Chinese Military Parade; Judge Rules The Trump Administration Broke The Law For Deploying National Guard Troops To Los Angeles; Brazil's Ex-President Jair Bolsonaro Faces Final Phase Of Coup Plot Trial; First Look Inside U.S. Deportation Flight To Cuba; New Quake Strikes Afghanistan; At Least 1,000 Killed In Sudan Landslide; Israeli Military Mobilizing Forces. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired September 02, 2025 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, HOST, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, a show with strength and solidarity.
North Korea's Kim Jong un arrives in Beijing where he'll attend a major military parade with the Presidents of Russia and China. Then, we are
expecting to hear from U.S. President Donald Trump this hour after a judge ruled that he broke the law by deploying troops to Los Angeles this Summer.
Plus, a landmark trial in Brazil enters its final stage in what could pose a major test to the nation's democracy. Former President Jair Bolsonaro is
charged with planning a coup in an attempt to cling to power. We'll have that and much more ahead this hour. But first, tonight, as President Donald
Trump prepares to make an announcement in Washington half the world away, three leaders are getting ready for a show of military might meant to
challenge the western-led global order.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong un will attend a massive military parade on Wednesday in Beijing, hosted by Xi
Jinping, marking 80 years since the end of World War II. As CNN's Marc Stewart reports, it comes on the heels of a summit where President Xi
unveiled his vision for a new world order.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): We are really being prepared to be overwhelmed with optics in the sense that we will have all of these
world leaders here with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as a unified front almost against the West. Let's talk briefly about this meeting we saw earlier
today with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin.
These two men have shared what's been described as this no limits friendship. Once again, today, the kinship was very strong. Remember, China
has not condemned Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. China continues to be the top buyer of Russian oil. In fact, a deal was announced today about the
creation of a new gas pipeline that certainly could help benefit China.
And then we heard from Putin very warm words about his relationship with China and Xi Jinping. Let's take a brief listen to some of his remarks.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT, RUSSIA (through translator): I thank you for the warm welcome extended to our entire delegation, our close communication
reflects the strategic nature of Russia, China relations, which are at an unprecedentedly high level.
STEWART: And all of this is leading up to tomorrow morning's big military parade through the streets of Beijing that will cross through Tiananmen
Square, in front of Tiananmen Square, and there we will see Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong un all standing together as this united front
against the United States.
We have China and we have Russia, which are nuclear powers, and then, of course, we've talked a lot about the nuclear ambitions of Kim Jong un. It's
really a story where symbolism is going to be the big dominating theme, not so much any kind of agreements or announcements, but the fact that they are
all together, it's going to send a strong message, or at least, China does, to the rest of the world that it is a force.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Our thanks to Marc Stewart for that report. Well, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calls the China summit in China performative, and
he accuses China as well as India, the biggest buyers, of course, of Russian crude of fueling the conflict in Ukraine. For more U.S. reaction, I
want to bring in our senior politics reporter, Stephen Collinson.
And Stephen, we heard there from our correspondent putting everything in focus for us in terms of the grandeur of this, how performative this is.
It's a show of unity, a show of resilience and growing resistance, it seems, to the West pretty much on full display. Would this, you think,
rattle the United States? How would the White House be viewing this diplomatic, economic brotherhood?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: I think that President Trump would certainly see these pictures, because there's a great watcher
of TV, I think from our knowledge of him, we can surmise that he will see this less through a geopolitical lens than the performative one that you
were talking about there.
This is great stagecraft. It's a great production, and I think Trump will be watching this and perhaps be a little jealous.
[14:05:00]
Remember, he had his own military parade on his birthday earlier this Summer. It was nothing on the scale or the grandeur of this, and I think it
sends a very eloquent message across the world to Washington that China really means business here and it's superseded Russia as a great power,
certainly. And it does draw the line of the big coming geopolitical clash between the United States and China. That is going to be the formative
thing of the coming decades.
SOARES: Yes, and look, the optics as we look at some of these images are powerful as we've seen in the last 24 hours. You know, the smiles, the
holding hands, the car rides together. But how do you think this translates into policy? I mean, Marc was talking about new world order that Xi Jinping
is painting to.
We also heard from him, and he said, and I'm quoting him here, "we must oppose the cold war mentality, block confrontation and bullying practices.
This is what he was saying, pretty much hinting at U.S. behavior. How does that translate, you think, to policy?
COLLINSON: Yes, and you know, this is an organization, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, that's got all sorts of fissures down the middle
of it, for instance. Although India and China are much closer in this summit than they have been historically, there are still big border
disputes between them.
But I think it's a case of my enemy's enemy is my friend. And what those speeches from Putin, from Xi and other leaders are sending the messages
that there is this front of countries that are determined to thwart the United States and its policy goals in Asia and elsewhere. You know, 80
years since the end of the Second World War, the world that was bequeathed by that war, a U.S.-led global order in which the United States and then a
re-developed Europe rose to great power, is now being challenged by a new superpower. And I think that is the very significant thing.
SOARES: Yes --
COLLINSON: And it's coming at a time when the West is being undermined by the country that was its most powerful builder, the United States. Donald
Trump is a unilateralist. He doesn't really see alliances or work through them. And that is another reason why a lot of these countries seem much
stronger than they were in relation to the United States.
SOARES: If I just turn that -- you know, turn your analysis on its head, how much then has President Trump's policies perhaps emboldened this? You
know, I'm talking about Ukraine tariffs. Has this backfired do you think?
COLLINSON: Yes, I think first of all, with the trade war with China, Trump took on China, and because China has this great Trump card of a great big
economy and a real earth metals, which the United States really needs for its tech industry and its military applications. He's basically had to back
down. He can bully smaller countries, he can't bully China.
That send a message. He held the summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Since then, Putin has shown that it's quite possible to defy the United
States to get a win for himself, and with his continued attacks on civilians, he's shown that he doesn't really care what the United States
and Donald Trump thinks.
Trump, you know, the logical step here would be for United States and Europe, one of the most powerful economies in the world. Collectively, to
stand up and forge a united front of western democracies against China and its bloc. The issue there is that Trump has undermined the European Union -
-
SOARES: Yes --
COLLINSON: For ideological reasons, so is his Vice President J.D. Vance, and that makes that impossible. He spent more time attacking the European
Union than making common cause with it. So, I think a lot of Trump's policies are undermining the U.S. position. I think the key test here is,
though, is what is the outcome of the U.S.-China trade war?
If Trump is able to secure massive concessions from China, and to be seen again for the United States to be the preeminent economic force in the
world. That could put a different complexion on all of this. But for now, it looks like across every arena of U.S. endeavor, it's going to face
resistance from this bloc.
SOARES: Stephen, appreciate it, Stephen Collinson there for us in Washington D.C. this hour, as always, great to see you, Stephen. Now, I
want to show you some live images coming to us from the White House where, as we promised in the last 8 minutes or 9 minutes or so, we are expecting
any moment President Trump is expected to make an announcement regarding the U.S. space command.
A source tells CNN, the administration plans to move space command, the headquarters, basically from Colorado to Alabama, reversing a decision that
was made in the Biden era, it will be the President's first public remarks in a week. And of course, we'll keep an eye on when that gets underway,
we'll of course, be monitoring for you.
[14:10:00]
And as President Trump doubles down on his threat to send the National Guard to Chicago, a federal judge has ruled that he broke the law by
deploying troops to Los Angeles this Summer. The President ordered thousands of California National Guard members and hundreds of U.S. Marines
to patrol the streets of L.A. in an aggressive immigration crackdown amid anti-ICE protests, if you remember, in the city.
The judge's ruling, including a strong rebuke of the President, charging that Mr. Trump appears intent on creating quote, "a national police force
with the President as its chief". We're joined by CNN's White House reporter Alayna Treene. So, Alayna, a defeat and a message here clearly,
from the judge to President Trump. What is the message?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, well, essentially, he said that the President as well as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, violated the
law in using the National Guard in Los Angeles, really U.S. military is how the ruling phrased it, to try and carry out law enforcement operations. I
think that line that you read, Isa, was really the one that stuck out to me from this decision.
He said that the President and Secretary Hegseth have stated their intention to call National Guard troops into service in other cities across
the country. So, obviously not only talking about Los Angeles, referencing that he expects this could happen elsewhere, then saying thus creating a
national police force with the President as its chief.
And of course, the concerns about this are whether or not the President is actually going to try and do this in other places. We do know -- and some
of my colleagues and I broke this news last week that they want to use what happened in L.A. earlier this Summer as a model for Chicago with some of
those operations expected to begin as early as this week or really Friday, we're told, and really having the same type of immigration operation be
carried out in the Windy City like they had in Los Angeles.
So, there could be some, you know, further -- you know, readings into this and applications of this ruling. But I should note that the judge, despite
his ruling, saying that this violated the law, he can't force the President or the administration not to do this in other cities. This ruling really
does apply just to the state of California. Isa.
SOARES: Do we have a sense, Alayna, then from your contacts and those you've been reaching out to, whether one, the President is going to appeal
this, as he pretty much has appealed everything else, and how far from your conversations that you're having, is the President willing to go? In other
words, how much of an obstacle is this ruling when he -- when we're talking about Chicago here?
TREENE: You know, I don't think it's going to be much of an obstacle at all, especially given what I had said, that this really does apply to
California. It doesn't go beyond that. And I will say that Breyer's decision, the Judge Breyer, in this case, he essentially has given them
until next Friday, the Trump administration to appeal this ruling.
I think it's probably almost certain that they are going to do so and try to challenge this in court. And honestly, I will say from my conversations
with people in this White House, a lot of cases like this, a lot of these legal battles that they're fighting, they welcome, they want them to go
higher so that they could potentially set a new precedent with some of these decisions.
And so, it will be interesting to see how this plays out in court. But again, especially when it comes to the National Guard and sending troops to
Los Angeles, that's really what we saw the judge take issue with in this case. That is what they are planning to do with Chicago.
They are expected to send immigration personnel from agencies like ICE, from Customs and Border Patrol, but they've also been preparing the
National Guard to potentially go to Chicago as well, for what the Trump administration has told me has been more of a peacekeeping kind of mission
around that immigration and deportation efforts that they are planning. All to say, this could get messy, but I do find it unlikely that they wouldn't
move ahead with this planned immigration operation this week.
SOARES: And we are expecting, as we told our viewers in the last few minutes to see and to hear from the President, he's expected to make an
announcement on U.S. space command on their headquarters being moved. But I suspect you'll face numerous questions, not just on this as well.
TREENE: Oh, absolutely, I think the reason, Isa, why so many people are anxiously kind of looking forward to this 2:00 p.m. announcement is more
not even on the substance of it, which you said is this announcement on --
SOARES: Yes --
TREENE: On the moving of the headquarters of the U.S. Space Command, but more because we haven't seen the President really in about a week. Yes, I
have to point out, you know, he went golfing this weekend. We were able to catch images of him golfing. He did a media interview one day. He's been
posting on social media, but it is very rare for President Donald Trump to go days without coming out.
Addressing the cameras, addressing the press, taking questions. It's not really his style. And so, that's why there's been a lot of questions about
what has he been doing, why hasn't he been engaging with the media like he normally does. And so, today, will be at 2:00 p.m. -- well, it's past 2:00
p.m., hopefully shortly.
[14:15:00]
Although he's often late to these events, will be the first opportunity in a week now that reporters will have a chance to press him not only on this
announcement, of course, but on all of the other issues that have been going on over the last several days.
SOARES: Indeed, we're keeping a close eye on our monitors, of course, on our feeds, whenever that begins, we will bring that to our viewers. Thanks
very much, Alayna, as always, appreciate it.
TREENE: Thank you --
SOARES: We're going to stay in the United States because the Jeffrey Epstein files are back in the spotlight as lawmakers return to Capitol
Hill. We are tracking a bipartisan team up between Republican Representative Thomas Massie and his Democratic counterpart, Ro Khanna.
Now, today, they have been collecting signatures for a petition to force a vote on a bill that would require the release of all relevant Epstein case
material, 218 signatures are needed to force that bill to the floor.
Meanwhile, a posthumous memoir by one of Epstein's most prominent accusers is set to be published next month. The late author, Virginia Giuffre died
by suicide in April at the age of 41. And still to come tonight, a landmark case for Brazil's modern democracy as the trial of former President Jair
Bolsonaro edges closer to a verdict.
We'll explore that. Plus, an exclusive look inside a U.S. deportation flight arriving in Cuba. That report just ahead. You are watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Brazil's Supreme Court is nearing a verdict in the landmark trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro. He is accused of plotting a coup
following his electoral defeat, if you remember, in 2022, in an attempt to cling on to power. He could be sentenced up to 40 years in prison if found
guilty. Bolsonaro, who is already under house arrest for defying court restrictions, has denied any wrongdoing.
And the significance of this you ask, no Brazilian politician has ever stood trial for something like this. The trial has also triggered a
diplomatic clash, as we've been showing you here with Washington. U.S. President Donald Trump has called Bolsonaro's prosecution, as we brought
you this -- when the news broke, a witch-hunt and demanded it to end immediately.
In a letter to Brazilian President Lula da Silva dated, you can see, July 9th. Well, I was there in Brasilia to cover when supporters of Bolsonaro
stormed the federal government buildings. I spoke to one woman who took part in that day. Here's a clip from my report in 2023.
[14:20:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: I asked her if her actions make her a terrorist. "I'm not a terrorist. I don't have weapons", she tells me. But those that did carry
them left their mark on this country's institution, tearing through the halls of power here with axes, knives and even grenades, according to the
Justice Minister, in an act that can only be described as an attack on Brazilian democracy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: CNN's Brazil's Americo Martins, he joins me now in the studio. Americo, this is a historic day, and I'm sure many in Brazil are watching
this closely, because this is the first time, as you said, kind of high ranking officials, and Bolsonaro is not the only one who have been accused
of attempted coup, are being subjected to a criminal trial. So, just give our viewers a sense of what we have heard so far.
AMERICO MARTINS, CNN BRAZIL SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Hello, thanks for having me. Isa, today the prosecutor made the case, put a lot of evidence against
Bolsonaro and seven other defendants, including three Generals, retired Generals and the former head of the Brazilian Navy.
Now, right now, as we speak, the defense is starting to talk. But as you said, it's a very historical moment because for the first time, we have not
only a big politician, but also military generals and the former head of the Navy answering for allegations of attempted coup, despite the former --
the huge history we have with military attempts --
SOARES: Of course --
MARTINS: Against democracy in Brazil, including a long dictatorship no one has ever answered for any of those.
SOARES: And just remind our viewers of some of the evidence that is being presented against Bolsonaro here.
MARTINS: One of the strongest points is a plea deal that the main secretary, the personal secretary, a former military as well, gave to the
prosecutors. And he gave a lot of information about a coup that was attempted, including plans to kill Lula da Silva, who was then the elected
President, to kill his Vice President and even one of the justices, Alexandre de Moraes, who is leading the case.
There was also a lot of evidence uncovered from the cell phones. Lots of documents from Bolsonaro and all these defendants. So, there is a lot of
very strong evidence of plans before the elections, after the elections, before Lula took office, and obviously also the big events as you showed --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINS: On the 8th of January --
SOARES: And sowing -- and also, I think part of this is sowing distrust and mistrust in the electoral system of Brazil, which was -- which is all
connected. You mentioned the Justice Alexandre de Moraes, he is an important voice. He began the trial, I'm just going to read it to our
viewers saying this, "history teaches us the impunity, omission and cowardice are not options for peace".
He then went on to say this, talking about the Supreme Court and the role it must pay, saying that the Supreme Court is, quote, "judge impartially
regardless of threats or legal action, ignoring internal and external pressure." I mean, he should know, he's also faced threats, hasn't he, from
outside?
MARTINS: Absolutely, because he was sanctioned by the -- by the U.S. government, by President Trump himself using the Magnitsky law --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINS: So, he has a lot of economic sanctions against him, and the Brazilians expect more sanctions from the U.S. government once the trial is
over, because the Brazilian government does not believe that Trump only wants to -- Bolsonaro to be acquitted or not judged or not tried. What they
believe is that President Trump wants to interfere in the elections next year.
We're going to have presidential elections in October 2026, and the Brazilian government believes Trump wants a docile government, a government
that is aligned with him.
SOARES: So, that letter that we were talking about, that President Trump signed, of course, who as you can see for President Lula da Silva. When
they got that letter, how was that received across Brazil?
MARTINS: The government received very badly because it was --
SOARES: Of course --
MARTINS: An interference in Brazilian politics and Brazilian sovereignty, and they returned the letter. Officially, they sent it back to the -- to
the U.S. --
SOARES: Return to sender --
MARTINS: Embassy. But obviously, the supporters of Bolsonaro and he's a very popular politician.
SOARES: Yes he is, yes.
MARTINS: They were very pleased with that, because they think that the courts are compromised, that the Brazilian government is acting against
Bolsonaro, that the trial is not going to be fair. So, the only point that they can see is an external pressure on the Brazilian government and the
Supreme Court. But Brazil is a democracy. There is a separation of power.
SOARES: Power, yes --
MARTINS: The government cannot do anything about that.
SOARES: Very briefly, this could wrap up any time from today onwards. But I imagine the Bolsonaro side will try to drag this out, try to find ways to
delay it. What is your sense?
MARTINS: The -- Bolsonaro can appeal --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINS: Again against that decision with the Supreme Court is very unlikely. If he's considered guilty, obviously --
SOARES: Of course, yes --
MARTINS: We are just assuming because of the evidence is so big, but obviously, he is innocent until proven guilty --
SOARES: Guilty, yes --
[14:25:00]
MARTINS: He is also calling the right-wing politicians are calling for a big demonstration on Sunday in Brazil --
SOARES: On Saturday, yes --
MARTINS: Because it is Independence Day, the 7th of September.
SOARES: We'll keep an eye on -- important to point out that Bolsonaro was not in court today. I know you'll keep an eye on him, appreciate it, thank
you very much indeed. I want to turn our attention now to Cuba, where the Trump administration is shifting its immigration policy. Tens of thousands
of Cubans who traveled to the United States during the Biden era, expected to be able to stay as Cubans before them, had for them, a generation, of
course.
But now many who sought the American dream are facing possible deportation. Our Patrick Oppmann was given an exclusive inside look at U.S. deportation
flight arriving in Cuba.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The ICE deportation flight lands with 161 Cuban deportees, the largest number ever
aboard a single plane. Officials here tell me all returned to their homeland in shackles. For decades, Cubans arriving in the U.S. were
considered refugees fleeing communism and received preferential immigration status.
But under President Trump's second term, their political fortunes have shifted radically, potentially, tens of thousands now face the threat of
deportation. This is the first time a Cuban government has allowed international media to film the arrival of a U.S. flight transporting their
deported citizens.
(on camera): This enormous plane that has just landed behind me is full of Cuban deportees. For many of them, it will be the first time they touch
Cuban soil in years. And despite the fact that U.S.-Cuban relations are at their worst point in decades, these deportation flights have continued.
(voice-over): The deportees are unshackled and disembarked the plane, a few at a time to begin reprocessing. This man complains to us that he had tight
handcuffs on for hours and lost feeling in his arms and legs. Immediately, we noticed a woman coming off the plane who is visibly distraught. We are
only able to ask the woman (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE), a few questions before her reprocessing begins.
But the story she tells us is chilling. "They left behind my two-year-old daughter, I lost her", she tells me, referring to ICE officials. They told
me the girl was American and could not leave the country. According to Reyes, she was arrested in June during a routine check in with ICE in
Nebraska, where she was living with her U.S.-born daughter.
Reyes says she then spent more than three months in detention centers. She was being deported -- she said ICE officials told her for having pleaded no
contest to a second degree assault charge in 2023, for which Reyes was placed on probation and served no jail time. In a statement to CNN, the
Department of Homeland Security called Reyes a, quote, "criminal, illegal, alien and child abuser".
Although court records don't show any such conviction. Reyes faced a child abuse, no injury charge as her infant daughter was in the house during the
2023 assault incident. But a search of Nebraska court records shows that prosecutors dropped the child abuse charge against Reyes as part of her
plea deal.
The DHS statement goes on to say Reyes' child who she had custody of, remained with her father, a, quote, "U.S. citizen", at his request. CNN
spoke with the girl's father, who said he was a U.S. resident, not a U.S. citizen, and had crossed illegally into the U.S. with Reyes from Mexico,
and that he did not want the girl to travel to Cuba as, quote, "life would be too hard for her there".
These haphazard, excruciating family separations are likely to become more common if the Trump administration is able to follow through on deporting
tens of thousands of Cubans who came to the U.S. on a parole program during the Biden administration. It remains to be seen if Cuba is willing or able
to accept all of those deportees.
As the island reels from worsening shortages of electricity, water and food and increased U.S. economic sanctions. Cuban immigration officials say
deportees are treated humanely, and in most cases processed and released within hours. "They're Cuban", this official tells us. "They go home where
their family is. They don't have a problem with immigration to be reinserted into society".
Many of these deportees, though, say they sold everything they owned to finance their journey to the U.S., and little remains for them in Cuba.
Others like Yudierquis Reyes, can't bear to be separated from the family they left behind "If I don't get her back, I am going", she says. "I hope
Cuba doesn't ask for me back. No country. They will have to let me go. Whatever amount of time I have to be locked up, I will be."
[14:30:02]
For some, there's simply nothing more that they can lose. And even as the Trump administration ramps up deportations from the U.S., many of these
Cuban deportees say they will find a way to return.
Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And still to come tonight, the Taliban are asking for help after another large earthquake hit Afghanistan earlier. We'll speak to CNN's Nic
Robertson about the devastation.
And then, later, another European country announces plans to recognize a Palestinian State citing a duty to prevent any risk of genocide. Both those
stories after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back, everyone. Another earthquake has rocked Afghanistan today after a quake last weekend killed hundreds of people. The Taliban
meanwhile are requesting international help. Today's 5.2 magnitude quake struck northeast of Jalalabad, that's near the epicenter of Sunday's 6.0
quake. The death toll has climbed past 1,400 people.
Heavy rain and landslides have made it difficult for rescue and relief teams to reach remote areas. In fact, entire villages have been destroyed.
Here's how one victim describes what it's been like for his family.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KHAYAT KHAN, KUNAR PROVINCE RESIDENT: Two of my family members were killed in the earthquake last night. Our house was completely destroyed. We need
shelter and we need any help we can get.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Our Nic Robertson joins us now with more. And Nic just bring us up to date then on the latest on rescue and recovery, given, of course, this
aftershock that we have seen.
[14:35:00]
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, 5.2. So, it is one of the biggest aftershocks 40 hours after the original. And that has
disrupted the recovery efforts because it's caused more fragility in the roads. The roads this morning, or at least the middle of the day, afghan
time, were filled with vehicles trying to get in, but they still, in a lot of places, couldn't get through. So, the Afghan governments resorted to
using helicopters, to airdrop commandos into some of the villages that they can't get to because they need to get people on the ground to help the
villagers there, but there's no other way to get them in. So, that's happening.
But yes, that appeal -- the international appeal, people are listening. The UAE Center Rescue and Recovery Plane, they're going to send tents, food,
medical supplies. The European Union has made a big commitment.
But here's the sort of caveat with that or the reality of the situation, it'll be the end of the week maybe before they can get the two planes with
the, you know, more than $1 million worth of goods on them. The shelters, the water purification systems that they're trying to get in, it's a
serious commitment, it just takes time. The U.K. committed $1.3 million. India has already managed to fly in. It's closer, of course, a thousand
tents, but they get to Kabul, then they have to get out to the field centers where the Afghans are setting up sort of rescue places. So, it's
very much in process. And the numbers, of course, we've seen them go up.
SOARES: And you know Pakistan well, you know Afghanistan well. Give us a sense. I mean, these village -- some of these villages are incredibly
remote, aren't they, and mountainous. We looked at some -- and some the of the infrastructure itself, it's kind of muddy, it's kind of rocky. Trying
to even get access to so many of these people, whether it's medical help, would they have that in place? Are these poor areas of Afghanistan here?
ROBERTSON: They are poor. I mean, the whole country is poor. The whole country is impoverished. A lot of people live very close to the poverty
line. Some -- many people live below it. But the -- I think what the Afghan government is going to try to do, as much as we can tell their initial plan
is to sort of set up a displacement camp area that's sort of on more open stable ground where they try to bring people out to it.
But getting into those villages, the floods, the recent floods, drought before that, the soil is fragile, the houses themselves, they're made of
big boulders, mud, holding them together, literally just trees on the roof, flat roofs, mud packed in the sort of leaves and branches of the trees.
That's your roof. It keeps the water out, but of course it's not strong against an earthquake. So, it does just collapse in on the people in there.
SOARES: I was speaking to an NGO out of Kabul yesterday and I asked him about, you know, the shrinking aid, foreign aid, what impact has that had,
and he said it's been punishing, it's been absolutely punishing to Afghanistan. Speak to the impact that has had over the -- in the last kind
of year or so.
ROBERTSON: One of the things it means most immediately is that the warehouses that might normally have piles of tents and piles of food, they
don't, because the money hasn't been there to purchase it, they don't have those stockpiles ready to go. For one U.N. organization, they were saying,
we need to recommission one of our helicopters. We had to decommission it earlier in the year.
And I think just to give you an idea of the metric of what it takes to sustain people who are displaced from their homes, the Norwegian Refugee
Committee, Jan Egeland, announced that they would need I think it is $2 million to look after 25,000 people for six months, and it's a much bigger
number than that that's been affected.
So, when the US, as it's done this year, has reduced its aid budget to Afghanistan by $1.7 billion, that's a massive shortfall. The aid going into
Afghanistan a couple of years ago, just was over $3.5 billion. It's now down to hundreds of thousands. Or -- yes, hundreds of thousands of dollars.
So, the drop off has been significant. So, there isn't the medical wherewithal to support the doctors in the field, to support, you know, the
people who want to put up the tents who -- or distribute food or fly the helicopters.
SOARES: Yes. And that's having a real impact, of course, as you -- as we are hearing from the NGOs, and then they need immediate help. You know, the
next -- the 24, 48-hour window is so critical, right, Nic?
ROBERTSON: Get in, get people out from under the rubble, get them to somewhere safe. But at that point, you also have to have ready the places
to keep them safe. So, they don't get -- catch diseases that will spread if it's not --
SOARES: And they not caught effect on that. Of course. Nic, thank you very much indeed. Now, a devastating landslide has killed at least a thousand
people, that's in Western Sudan, that is according to Sudan Liberation Movement, which controls the region. The landslides struck onto Sunday
after days of heavy rainfall. The SLM is now asking the United Nation as well, as well as international aid agencies to help them with recovery
efforts.
[14:40:00]
Antoine Gerard, the U.N. deputy humanitarian coordinator for Sudan, spoke to CNN earlier. He discussed the challenges that they face. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTOINE GERARD, U.N. DEPUTY HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR FOR SUDAN: The challenge is certainly the accessibility, but also the capacity. The NGOs
that are already responding to the cholera outbreak, to the current situation we had on food insecurity. As you do remember in some part of the
Darfur, some areas were declared famine or risk of famine.
So, this is an add up to the various activities that the international community and the local NGOs do have to respond to. So, quite challenging.
We are in the middle of the rainy seasons. And unfortunately, we also anticipating that we might have other villages affected by landslide or
flooding, which is also a challenge to ensure that we do this decent response to everyone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Antoine Gerard there. Well, still to come tonight, Israel's military is mobilizing tens of thousands of reservists ahead of a planned
offensive to seize Gaza City and force all of its residents south. To bring you that story after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Tens of thousands of Israeli reservists are expected to report for duty today after being called up amid preparations from massive assault on
Gaza City. The IDF says the evacuation of the city sheltering more than 1 million people is inevitable. It is urging residents to go to Al-Mawasi,
that is a tiny area once declared a safe zone, but has been bombed multiple times.
Belgium, meanwhile, is the latest country to announce it intends to recognize a Palestinian State, saying it has a duty to prevent any risk of
genocide. And according to the world's leading scholars on genocide, a genocide in Gaza is already underway. Our Jeremy Diamond is following
developments tonight for us from Jerusalem.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Tens of thousands of Israeli military reservists were mobilized on Tuesday in preparation for Israel's
major assault on Gaza City, a city where nearly 1 million people are currently living and now at risk of being displaced. But what is especially
extraordinary about this moment is that this operation is moving forward with the call up of 60,000 reservists despite the fact that Israel's top
general, the military's chief of staff, Eyal Zamir, has effectively expressed opposition to carrying out this operation.
[14:45:00]
And that's because we've learned that in a series of security cabinet meetings, General Zamir has effectively made clear that he doesn't believe
this operation will lead to the total defeat of Hamas, which the Israeli Prime Minister has made clear is his goal. And he has also warned that it
will lead to the loss of life of Israeli soldiers and also could put at risk the lives of the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
Instead, the chief of staff has been urging this Israeli government to take up the ceasefire proposal and hostage release deal on the table, which
Hamas accepted about two weeks ago, in which the Israeli government has yet to respond to. Instead, the Israeli government has indicated, the prime
minister himself has indicated that a partial deal for the release of some of the hostages is no longer something that he is interested.
Instead, he's looking for a total deal that would secure the release of all of the hostages, lead to an end of the war in Gaza. And critically,
something that's been a red line for Hamas, Hamas demilitarizing and disarming in the Gaza Strip.
And so, this is quite a significant moment, one that carries enormous risk for Palestinians in Gaza City, where we've already started to see waves of
thousands of people beginning to flee the city. Hundreds of people who have been killed in the early steps of the Israeli military bombing and shelling
Gaza City over the course of just the last few days.
In addition to that, we are also seeing a wave of countries that are preparing to recognize a Palestinian State, partially in response not only
to the starvation, the famine that we have seen in parts of Gaza, but also in response to this impending Israeli military assault on Gaza City.
And in response to that, the Israeli government is now weighing potential retaliatory measures for those countries that plan to recognize Palestine
as a state. The Prime Minister set to hold a meeting on Thursday to discuss these proposals to annex parts of the West Bank. And his options that are
now on the table range from a limited takeover of several Jewish settlements to recognizing all of Area C, which is already under Israeli
security and administrative control and amounts to 60 percent of the West Bank. That would effectively be a major step to preclude the possibility of
a Palestinian State ever actually existing on the ground. And that is exactly the goal of many of the right-wing members of this government.
It's not clear that the Israeli prime minister will actually move forward with annexation. There are other retaliatory steps that he could take. But
certainly, this is one of the options now on the table.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And our thanks to Jeremy for that report. We're going to take a short break. We'll be back on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:50:00]
SOARES: -- in American Vogue. The fashion magazine naming its new head of editorial content, that's the title as Chloe Malle, the daughter of
Hollywood actress Candice Bergen Malle has previously worked as head of Vogue's website and co-host the magazine's podcast, "The Run Through with
Vogue." She replaces the legendary as well as notorious Anna Wintour, who now steps into a role overseeing Vogue's global operation.
Well, for more let's bring in our entertainment journalist Segun Oduolowu. And, Segun, first of all, apologies if I have to interrupt. I'm keeping an
eye out on -- and an ear, of course, on President Trump. Any developments, of course, I will have to interrupt. So, apologies for that.
But first of all, let's talk about this -- you know, this major step. For a woman who, of course, who has known Vogue for 14 years, I think, working at
Vogue, what do we know about her, about Chloe?
SEGUN ODUOLOWU, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: So, let me get all my one-liners really quick then, Isa. When you dance with the devil, the devil tells you
when the song is over. And as we know, "The Devil Wears Prada" was loosely based around Anna Wintour.
As you mentioned, she worked at Vogue since 1988. So, she's been the head of Vogue for almost as long as Chloe Malle has been alive, 37 years she was
the head compared to Chloe, who's 39 years old. But what this is what Anna really said, I'm her mentor and a student. By ushering in Chloe, they step
into the digital age. She had already been running Vogue Online, and by doing this now, just like all legacy publications, Vogue needs to figure
out how to be relevant, how to generate revenue in this new digital age, and that means younger blood.
SOARES: Yes.
ODUOLOWU: Anna's not stepping away completely. I don't -- you know, don't think the Met Gala is going to fall into wreck and ruin. But as editor in
chief of Vogue, she's handing it over to someone who has grown the digital imprint quite successfully since she took over in 2023.
SOARES: Yes. I didn't think Anna Wintour was going anywhere. But in terms of what Chloe's achieved, I mean, I know she made some waves because I
understand, and if you correct me if I'm wrong here, just from reading, she put Lauren Sanchez Bezos on the cover, right? In the -- on the editorial --
on their digital aspect.
ODUOLOWU: Yes.
SOARES: Just talk us through what waves, where she's broken, what impact she's had on the digital side.
ODUOLOWU: Well, let's work in reverse. When the news broke about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce getting engaged, everyone was -- every outlet was
focusing on, you know, the news. She focused on the ring. And that saw Vogue's social media explode, right. She was finding where the people were
talking and was honing in on it.
By putting Laura Sanchez Bezos on the cover of the Digital Vogue, writing a story about this incredible wedding, she tapped into a zeitgeist because
you had people who were very upset that Lauren Sanchez Bezos had not earned the right to be on Vogue. But it also ushered in the idea of, we love
celebrity weddings here in America, and I think around the world we go gaga for it, and she's been tapping into that for a while.
She was in charge of the photo shoot, the photo opportunities for the Biden -- for the Biden's -- not Joe Biden's daughter's wedding. And so, she is
really found that this is what is bringing in more eyeballs. This is what's bringing in more ears, and this is why the shift to someone young and with
their finger on the pulse is so necessary for Vogue.
SOARES: Yes. I suppose that tells us a lot in terms of what her title be -- going to be, head of editorial content, that tells us a lot about the
direction that Anna Wintour wants to take here, right?
ODUOLOWU: Absolutely. Anna is still going to be guiding a lot of the imagery and maybe some of the global outreach. But where Vogue is now going
to focus its energy is to get younger audience. Again, Chloe believes less is more, less publications. Maybe, you know, not as many, you know, bibles
hitting newsstand that no one really is picking up and reading anymore.
[14:55:00]
So, less will be more, more focused towards what people are talking about and let the big showy pieces that Vogue is known for just happen maybe four
times a year, tent pole style as opposed to constantly churning out publication.
SOARES: Yes. My final question, we've got about a minute here, is, you know, Wintour is larger than life. How can -- would she just be a shadow,
of course, in Chloe's, you know, kind of work ethic and Chloe's life, do you think? How much freedom you think she will have here?
ODUOLOWU: Well, she -- Anna Wintour, as you said, is all encompassing. And I think what will be interesting is just, to your point, how far she steps
away and how much Chloe is allowed to run and run with it in her own way. I still think you'll see Anna's fingerprints all over this when it comes to
imagery, but the stories that they go after, the media that they report and the way they report that media.
Remember Conde Nast also has podcasts and, you know, blogs and different ways that media is sent out. I think that will be all Chloe, and you'll
hear a new irreverent younger voice.
SOARES: Segun, as always, great to see you. Thank you very much indeed. And that does it for us for tonight. Do stay right here. "What We Know" with
Max Foster's up next. We'll have more, of course, from, tell us what we heard from President Trump, that's just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
