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Isa Soares Tonight
Teen Describes Moment Parents Were Taken by ICE Agents; U.S. Strike on Alleged Drug Boat Kills Six Near Venezuela; Kenya Mourns Death of Raila Odinga. Violent Clashes in Gaza Erupt Between Hamas and Rival Groups As Concern Grows Over the Security Situation in Gaza; U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth Says "Firepower" is Coming for Ukraine; Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award Revealed. Aired 2:00-3p ET
Aired October 15, 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, violent clashes in Gaza between Hamas
and rival groups as concern grows about the security situation in the enclave. Plus, firepower is coming for Ukraine, the U.S. Defense Secretary
says, but Tomahawk missiles not on the agenda of today's NATO meeting.
I'll ask Sweden's Defense Minister how soon Ukraine might get the weapons it's asking for. And showcasing the beauty of our natural world. We'll
reveal the winners of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Awards, and speak to the youngest prize holder. That, and much more coming up this
hour.
But first tonight, the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is being tested today on multiple fronts. While the world waits, of course, to hear
details on Gaza's long-term future, the U.N. Humanitarian chief says Israel must immediately open crossings to allow in humanitarian aid, saying
lifesaving supplies for civilians are not a bargaining chip.
The World Food Program says less than 200 trucks have entered daily since the truce for Gaza's 2 million people. Israeli authorities have said they
will limit aid until Hamas hands over all the deceased hostages. Only eight bodies have been returned so far. But after a forensic examination, the IDF
said one of them is not a hostage.
Israeli mourners gathered today for the funeral processions, you can see for one of the slain captives. Nasser Hospital in Gaza, meantime, is
reporting disturbing findings on the bodies of 90 Palestinians returned by Israel. It says their hands and legs were cuffed and some had gunshot
wounds, while others appear to have been run over by tanks.
The U.N. Human Rights Office says Israel's military continues to kill civilians in Gaza, with at least 15 shots since the ceasefire. Israel said
it opened fire on suspects who crossed truce lines. Hamas, it seems, is also killing Palestinians in Gaza, even releasing a gruesome video of
execution. All this making life extremely difficult for Palestinian civilians who have already of course, suffered so much during two years of
war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is no work, no food, no drinks, no housing, and now Winter is coming by God Almighty, I'm telling you, I swear we don't
have blankets. I have nothing, nothing at all. I left and my house was destroyed and I'm still in the same situation, and now we're suffering.
Where are we supposed to live? Where are we supposed to go? What are we supposed to do? There are about 36 of us here. Me, my grandchildren, my
daughters-in-law and my children, And we don't know where to go or where to turn.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, Hamas is calling on Gaza residents to hand over collaborators who helped Israel or else face what they call the strict hand
of justice. It's apparent public execution of eight people was being widely condemned. But just yesterday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he's OK
with the violence because Hamas was taking out gangs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They did take out a couple of gangs that were very bad, very bad gangs, and they did take them out,
and they killed a number of gang members, and that didn't bother me much, to be honest with you. That's OK. We had a -- that's a couple of very bad
gangs. You know, it's no different than other countries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And Mr. Trump insists, when we brought you that yesterday, this time yesterday, that Hamas will disarm without saying when? Earlier this
week, he said, quote, "we gave them approval for a period of time to stop problems in Gaza". Oren Liebermann has more on the executions, and of
course, we do want to warning -- warn you, the images are disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF (on camera): In the immediate aftermath of the ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas has quickly re-emerged, and is
reasserting its power in Gaza over parts of the decimated territory not occupied by Israel. Videos shared widely on social media and confirmed by
CNN show Hamas members carrying out execution-style killings on the streets of Gaza city.
We have to warn you, these images are graphic and CNN is not showing the videos in full. This is the moment the Hamas gunmen opened fire with eight
Palestinians on their knees, they appeared to be blindfolded. Seconds later, they are dead, their bodies lying on the ground.
[14:05:00]
The so-called Palestinian resistance factions, which include Hamas, praised the killings, calling them a, quote, "security campaign against
mercenaries, bandits and anyone they see as cooperating with the quote, 'Zionist enemy'". They called on Palestinians to report what they called
wanted individuals and anyone helping them. This is Hamas attempting to show it's back in control in Gaza and eliminating any opposition.
After the videos came to light, a prominent family in Gaza, the Doghmush family said Hamas had killed nearly 30 of their family members after they
were told they'd be treated fairly if they surrendered. They say the fate of many other family members is unknown. The Doghmush family denied working
with Israel and said Israeli forces had killed hundreds of relatives over the last two years.
During the war, we saw several unprecedented protests against Hamas in Gaza. Now, it appears they're working to quash any more acts of defiance.
The Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank condemned the killings as heinous crimes, which claimed the lives of dozens of citizens outside
the framework of the law and without fair trials.
A Palestinian rights group, the Independent Commission for Human Rights said the wave of summary executions without trial cannot be justified under
any circumstances. Such acts constitute grave legal and moral crimes that require urgent condemnation and accountability. Oren Liebermann, CNN in
Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And our thanks to Oren for that report. Let me bring in Kristen Holmes at the White House. And Kristen, you just heard there from Oren
Liebermann in Jerusalem. I mean, chaos, lawlessness dragging on, of course, and that would make it harder, of course, to bring in any sort of
international security force, which of course, has an impact on the aid, has an impact on the Palestinian people.
Where are we then? What is your understanding of where we are on the second phase of this deal, which, according to the President is already -- is
continuing to be discussed in Sharm El-Sheikh. Do we know where we are? Do we know who is leading it from the U.S. side?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do know that Jared Kushner and Middle Eastern envoy Steve Witkoff were going to play a large
role in these second-round of negotiations as well, whether or not they are the lead still remains to be seen. We have asked a number of questions as
to what exactly this looks like, but we do know that they are also involved and have been involved in this process.
And when it comes to phase two, if you talk to a number of these administration officials, they are very aware that this is a steep hill to
climb. They understand there are going to be a lot of issues, now, as many issues as we're seeing already on the ground, unclear. But they did believe
there was going to be a lot of sticking points and a lot of volatility until things actually leveled out.
Now, when it comes to these various different sticking points, particularly if you're looking at Trump's 20-point peace plan, you're hearing from the
administration that they do expect these leaders of other Arab nations, particularly the nations we saw in Egypt yesterday with President Trump to
be a part -- or two days ago, excuse me, to be a part of the negotiations, working with both Hamas and Israel, trying to put pressure on Hamas among
other groups.
So, how this actually plays out, I think the White House themselves don't actually know the answer to that at this time, but they do believe that
they are making some progress, even if you can't see it right now on the ground.
SOARES: Kristen Holmes there at the White House for us. Thanks very much, Kristen, good to see you. Well, the U.S. Defense Secretary is promising
firepower is coming to Ukraine in its war with Russia. Pete Hegseth was among the group of NATO Defense Ministers meeting in Brussels today where
he called on NATO allies to buy more American-made weapons for Ukraine on top of the $2 billion worth already being committed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, UNITED STATES: Firepower, that's what is coming, and we expect that it's coming from NATO. You get peace when you
are strong, not when you use strong words or wag your finger, you get it when you have strong and real capabilities that adversaries respect.
And I believe that's what NATO is doing. I believe that's what the Pearl Initiative is. So, our expectation today is that more countries donate even
more, that they purchase even more to provide for Ukraine to bring that conflict to a peaceful conclusion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to ask for access to American-made Tomahawk missiles when he visits the White
House on Friday. And those weapons would allow, of course, Ukraine to strike deep into Russia. In Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin
welcomed his Syrian counterpart, Ahmed al-Sharaa for talks.
Mr. Putin, of course, is a long-time ally of former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, who was granted asylum in Russia after being overthrown last
year. Let me bring in our Fred Pleitgen for much more on what we've seen today in this NATO Defense Ministers' meeting. And Fred, we are hearing, of
course -- we heard there, a small clip from Pete Hegseth, a very different rhetoric right?
To a year ago or so, where he basically said to Europe --
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes --
SOARES: You're on your own. But now, we're hearing firepower is coming to Ukraine. Does that possibly -- may it include Tomahawk missiles? Which, of
course, is what Ukrainians have been asking for, for some time now.
[14:10:00]
PLEITGEN: Hi, Isa, well, Tomahawks were actually not on the agenda at that NATO Summit today, but of course, in reality they were. In reality, it was
a topic that loomed large over this NATO Summit, even though officially, it wasn't part of the agenda. I listened to one of the press conferences by
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte earlier today, and he was specifically asked about these Tomahawks possibly being sent to the Ukrainians.
And he said, look, he didn't really want to comment on whether or not that was going to be the case, of course, everybody at that NATO Summit, and
certainly everybody in Europe is now looking to Friday, to that meeting between Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and President Trump of the United
States at the White House.
Where President Trump has already said he believes that Volodymyr Zelenskyy is going to ask for those Tomahawks. And if we remember, President Trump
was sort of being coy about it, saying that, look, if Vladimir Putin; the President of Russia, is not willing to end the war in Ukraine, then maybe
the United States will give Tomahawks to the Ukrainians.
Now, for the NATO Summit today, when Mark Rutte; the NATO Secretary-General was asked about that, he said, look, he can't comment on it because it is a
bilateral issue between the United States and between Ukraine, not only if the United States were to give the Ukrainians these weapons from U.S.
stockpiles, but also if the U.S. were to sell these weapons to European NATO members as part of that PURL program that Pete Hegseth was talking
about.
Even then, the United States would have to allow those weapons to be sent to the Ukrainians by those NATO allies, and of course, would also have a
say to what extent those weapons would be allowed to be used, for instance, against targets deep inside Russia. So, right now, that's what everybody is
waiting for. But in reality, of course, it was one of the main things that the Defense Ministers at that summit were talking about. Isa.
SOARES: Yes, and let's bring the discussion then to continental Europe or even eastern Europe here, Fred, because what we have been discussing, you
and I have discussed and what we've seen really is get a sense of how NATO is preparing for this increased Russian aggression, right, when it comes to
drones. Increased drone incursions, we have seen, I think with Poland, Estonia, Romania. What is the plan then from these NATO countries on that?
PLEITGEN: Well, they've certainly identified that as a major topic, and is a major issue. And there's several NATO countries in Europe or European
NATO countries that have said that they want to do more. Mark Rutte also, the NATO Secretary-General has been talking about what he calls a drone
wall, which essentially means that NATO countries with varying capabilities are going to try to pull those together, and obviously increase those as
well.
Whether or not that is anti-aircraft capabilities, whether or not that might be drones to counter drones is still something that's up in the air.
However, NATO countries have said that they do want to invest heavily in that. For instance, the Germans have come out today and say they want to
invest 10 billion into -- euros, into drone technology.
The Germans also saying that they want to station more fighter jets, for instance, in Poland, as part of an air policing mission. The second problem
that they have, though, the Europeans, Isa, is, they believe that when the drone incursion happened, the major one into Poland, a couple of weeks ago,
they were pretty good at shooting those drones down quickly, but the cost was immense.
And that's something they need to work on, not using fighter jets to shoot down cheap drones, but finding other methods to take down those drones and
keep the skies over Europe safe.
SOARES: Fred Pleitgen there for us in Berlin. Good to see you, Fred, thank you very much indeed. Well, fresh from the NATO talks, I want to welcome in
Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson, Minister, welcome to the show. Let me pick up with what you just heard there from my colleague, Fred Pleitgen,
and really pick up with what I heard from your British counterpart, Secretary Healy, who said today that Putin is watching what we do.
Besides, of course, that show of unity, that show of strength. Talk us through what has been agreed and what that message is to President Putin.
PAL JONSON, DEFENSE MINISTER, SWEDEN: Sure, I think the message is very clear. We're an alliance, and we are very cohesive. That's been great
political solidarity with the countries who have been affected. I'm thinking about Poland, I'm thinking about Romania, I'm thinking also about
Estonia. But it's not.
We also do deeds, and therefore we welcome that the Supreme Commander of NATO has actually launched a mission called the Eastern Sentry, where we
can have a military planning in order to ensure that we better can handle Russian incursions by drones or by fighter aircrafts into allied territory.
And that could, of course, include deploying more fighter aircraft from other allied countries or having ground-based or air-based assets and
capabilities to take out the drones.
SOARES: You were talking there about the drones, the escalation we've seen in Europe. I've spoken to many of the ministers whose countries, of course,
have seen drone incursions.
[14:15:00]
Where are we on the drone war? Because I remember talking to one of the Foreign Ministers saying, we're talking about 3-4 years down the line. How
realistic is that? And what is then Sweden prepared to do? Would it shoot down a Russian drone, just picking up from our Fred, saying, will this be
drones to counter drones here? Do we have any information on how exactly --
JONSON: Sure --
SOARES: This would work?
JONSON: Absolutely, I think it's crystal clear. But look, first say, just last week, we announced a new counter-drone package for $350 million. We
invested into our air defense capabilities the last three months for $1.3 billion U.S. So, we're doing heavy investments, and we want to get things
in the hands of the war-fighter really quickly.
Now, what we need also across Europe to do is to get the right legal framework. And in Sweden, if you do an incursion with a foreign fighter
aircraft, of course, the first things we will do is to warn you. But if you do an incursion into our airspace, we will defend our territory. And you --
shut down if you cause an immediate military threat.
So, we have clear rules of engagement across our territory. Now, what NATO now needs to do is to make sure that we harmonize those rules of engagement
that all allies operate in a similar fashion. And then we need to ramp up our capabilities, and we need to get the things in place, especially across
the frontier of the alliance very quickly.
NATO is, of course, in the lead of this, putting the military requirements, then the EU side can do financing for this, and they can do coordination of
procurement, and they can also help out in ramping up industrial production as well. So, there's going to be a collaboration there between EU and NATO.
SOARES: Yes, and speed of course is of the utmost importance. I wonder then, you know, what we heard from Pete -- Secretary Hegseth today, saying
that the U.S. say that firepower is coming to Ukraine. This will be U.S. weapons paid for by European nations. How soon will Ukraine get these
weapons?
And what message are you giving as being passed on to President Trump when it comes to the Tomahawk missiles? Because like Fred was saying, it wasn't
in the agenda, but it was kind of the elephant in the room. So, where do you -- where do you stand on that? Should the U.S., of course, give these
to Ukraine?
JONSON: Yes, so, the quicker the better the Ukrainians can get their hands on these U.S. weapons, the better it is. So, the first package that was
released was financed by the Netherlands and Sweden, Norway and Denmark financed one of these tall packages with equipment. Now, also remember,
this is defense equipment that we sometimes use in Europe, but we don't have it in numbers.
And -- but the U.S. has much more volumes. They have things like ballistic missile protection in the Patriots, they have HIMARS system, they have
jammers(ph) which we don't produce in Europe. So, if we can finance this and provide it to the Ukrainians, it's going to be very critical as comes
air defense, because here, the U.S. has much more and better capabilities than the Europeans.
We also get it, Europeans, as Europeans, now we have to shoulder a larger responsibility also when it comes to Ukraine support. We get the message
from Trump administration. We stand ready to do it before tomorrow -- this morning's meeting, there was six allies among Sweden who said we were
willing to contribute to Pal(ph).
After these meetings, there's almost 20 allies now, said they're willing to contribute to this initiative of buying from the Americans and putting it
in the hands of the Ukrainians because the Ukrainians really need it.
SOARES: Yes, what I didn't hear, Defense Minister, was Tomahawks. You feel -- you feel the U.S. should give them -- I mean, do you think that
Tomahawks are a bargaining chip to try and bring Russia into the fold, to get it to make concessions here in this war? I mean, we have certainly seen
a very frustrated President Trump over this.
Do you think that come Friday when President Zelenskyy meets President Trump at the White House, that President Trump is prepared to go there when
it comes to the Tomahawks? Is this something that Sweden is pushing for?
JONSON: Yes, well, of course, this is a U.S. decision, and the U.S. --
SOARES: Yes --
JONSON: Has to make the call on this one. But with that said, I think it's absolutely crucial that we remember international law, that Ukraine has
full right to defend itself inside its territory, but also outside of its territory. And it's quite successful right now in striking Russian targets,
putting pressure on their energy systems.
So, what Sweden has done, because we don't have this kind of long-range capabilities, we invested into Ukraine and defense industrial base, so,
they produced by themselves long-range strike drones and long-range missiles. And once again, international law says that Ukraine has the right
to defend itself inside and outside of its territory.
[14:20:00]
SOARES: Let me very briefly put this to you. You know, you -- we are seeing a very different kind of rhetoric from Secretary Hegseth, right? To
a year ago. Do you feel, Defense Minister, that the U.S. has fundamentally shifted its position when it comes to Ukraine?
JONSON: I feel much more alignment between the U.S. position --
SOARES: Yes --
JONSON: Now on a number of ways. One, of course, I think we do similar reading that Putin doesn't really seem interested in negotiating. And he
certainly will not negotiate unless he's put under more pressure. And the road to peace in Ukraine, that goes by having more sanctions on the Russian
economy.
And it goes by delivering more weapons to the Ukrainians. Therefore, we welcome now the PURL Initiative, where we can buy this American hardware
that we don't really produce in Europe, and we can put it in the hands of the Ukrainians.
SOARES: Yes, and that's pressure that we have not seen thus far from the United States. Defense Minister, I really appreciate you taking the time to
speak to us. Thank you very much, sir.
JONSON: Thank you.
SOARES: And still to come tonight, stagnation on Capitol Hill, we'll check in on the U.S. government shutdown now hitting day 15. All of this
happening in the midst of federal layoffs. Plus, despite denials by the White House, sources briefed by the Pentagon say the U.S. has targeted
Colombians in its attacks from boats in the Caribbean. We'll have the latest on the strikes when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: No deal in sight. Congressional lawmakers remain deadlocked as the U.S. government shutdown enters its third week. For 15 days now, federal
employees who fall under the umbrella of essential workers have been working basically without pay. And this includes TSA officers and Air
Traffic Controllers.
As for active duty military members, the troops were set to miss their first paycheck today, but U.S. President Donald Trump says, he is, quote,
"identified funds to pay them". Meanwhile, Mr. Trump is threatening to use this moment for his own political goals. On Friday, the administration will
release a list of what he calls Democratic programs, that is, programs that have been supported by Democrats that could be cut during the shutdown.
In the next hour, President Trump is set to speak to reporters from the Oval Office. Of course, we'll bring that to you. Let's go to Arlette Saenz
who is following all the drama for us in Capitol Hill. And Arlette, good to see you. I understand the Senate is voting right now, is voting as we
speak. What are the chances here? Because I mean, we're day 15. This is -- this is going way longer than anyone anticipated.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Isa, the Senate is now voting for the ninth time on that House passed GOP plan to fund the government until
November 21st.
[14:25:00]
But right now, both sides continue to dig in on their positions. And it doesn't seem like there's anything happening to really shake loose these
talks. We still have not seen Democrats and Republican leaders come together to try to negotiate a way out of this shutdown. Both sides want
the other to come to the table. Republicans saying Democrats need to agree to that stopgap funding bill that was passed by the House, while Democrats
want negotiations on healthcare, primarily about extending the Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year.
So, right now, there really aren't any signs people are budging. Senate Majority leader John Thune did say that there have been some bipartisan
talks among a group of senators to talk about ways to reopen the government, but those talks aren't actually translating to the leader level
of official negotiations just yet.
It all comes as over a million federal workers are really hung in the balance in this moment. About 1.4 million federal workers are either
furloughed or working without pay. And then there are those thousands of employees who have actually been permanently fired from their positions.
The White House had announced that first wave of layoffs last Friday, impacting about 4,000 federal workers.
And they have signaled that they are ready to impose more layoffs on the federal workforce if this shutdown drags on. What they are hoping is that
this is something that will really push Democrats to the negotiating table. But so far, Democrats have said they're not budging, that these are tactics
the Trump administration has used all along.
So still, really a lot of big questions up here on Capitol Hill as these lawmakers continue to talk, but not really talk about how to end the
shutdown at a time when countless number of Americans are being --
SOARES: Yes --
SAENZ: Impacted personally with either losing their jobs --
SOARES: Yes --
SAENZ: Awaiting paychecks or services that they can't access.
SOARES: Yes, talking at each other rather than with each other. You know, we heard that President Trump is expected to come out, Arlette, with this
list on Friday of Democratic -- he said Democratic programs, right? What could we be looking at that he may be cutting here because that's
additional pressure on the Democratic side.
SAENZ: Yes, that -- and he announced that they will be releasing that list a bit later this week. You'll remember that Trump has already taken steps
to cut other Democratic programs. He had cut funding for infrastructure projects in New York City and Chicago, and they've also pulled back on
funding for energy programs across 16 states that are led by Democrats and had voted for Vice President Kamala Harris.
But when I talked to senators from Democratic -- who are representing Democratic constituencies, they say that this doesn't feel like anything
new for the Trump administration, that they have from the very beginning since Trump took office in January, been looking at ways to slash the
government, slash the size of the federal workforce, but also take aim at programs that the President doesn't necessarily agree with.
So, we're still waiting to hear exactly the types of programs that he will target. But this is certainly a cause for concern for Democrats, even some
Republicans who don't think that this is the approach that should be taken in this moment.
SOARES: Yes, both sides continue to doubling down. Arlette, great to see you, thank you very much indeed. And still to come tonight, we are learning
more about U.S. strikes targeting alleged drug traffickers off the coast of Venezuela. We'll have the details for you next on that. And seven days of
mourning are declared in Kenya following the death of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. We'll look at his political legacy coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
SOARES: A Chicago teen tells CNN she could barely keep herself together when both of her parents were taken by ICE agents on her 10-year-old
brother's birthday. Video showing the confrontation and questioning by ICE agents has gone viral. Yurithsi Enciso and her older brother have been left
to care for her younger siblings as they wait for answers on what could happen next. Our Maria Santana has their story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
YURITHSI ENCISO, PARENTS DETAINED BY ICE: It's OK. No, please. It's OK. We're OK.
MARIA SANTANA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): This video quickly spread across social media. A teenage girl on the side of the road shielding her
younger siblings as ICE agents arrest their parents and older brother after a traffic stop in September.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your brother, is he a citizen?
Y. ENCISO: We don't answer questions.
That's all I could say. Like no other words came out of my mouth. I was not prepared for that.
SANTANA (voice-over): 19-year-old Yurithsi Enciso and her 22-year-old brother Moises Jr. speaking publicly for the first time about that viral
moment that they say turned their lives upside down.
Y. ENCISO: My heart was just -- it kept pounding, kept pounding. My legs, my hands kept shaking.
SANTANA (voice-over): She says she was only able to hold it together for her 12-year-old sister and her little brother who was turning 10 that day.
Y. ENCISO: I didn't want them to see me crying because that was going to affect them more. So, I just had to make sure they were calm. It's OK.
We're going to be OK.
BLITZER: Moises Jr. says that morning he went with his parents to pick up supplies at Home Depot before the family's birthday celebration when they
were pulled over for allegedly making an illegal U-turn. He recalls three ICE vehicles, blocking them in, and agents surrounding their car demanding
to see their IDs.
MOISES ENCISO JR., PARENTS DETAINED BY ICE: And they just kept asking us these questions, and my dad kept looking back at me and saying, like,
should I answer, what should I do? And I was kind of, like, also panicking.
SANTANA (voice-over): Yurithsi and Moises Jr. both are awaiting approval for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival Status, or DACA. Their siblings
are U.S. citizens. According to DHS, their parents, Constantina Ramirez and Moises Enciso Sr., are undocumented Mexican immigrants. They have lived in
Cicero, a suburb outside of Chicago, for nearly 20 years, the family attorney told CNN. They are now being held in separate detention centers.
Y. ENCISO: And I remember that first night, the first thing I wanted to do was sleep in my mom and dad's bed because it felt like if I was sleeping
there, I had, like, a part of them.
SANTANA (voice-over): That night marked the beginning of a new reality, one where they were suddenly left to care for their younger siblings.
Y. ENCISO: They haven't been doing good. They're always saying that they miss them whenever we're, like, about to eat. They're like, oh -- and they,
like, have flashbacks about my mom and dad. Oh, I remember when my mom did this. And they just, like, go quiet. They're sad.
SANTANA: What would it mean for your family if they were to get deported?
M. ENCISO: I try not to think about it.
[14:35:00]
SANTANA: I'm so sorry. I know it's hard.
M. ENCISO: I think we don't know. Like, we don't know if my siblings can stay here with us. Like, we don't know if they have to go to Mexico.
There's just a lot of, like, insecurity or uncertainty that we just don't know.
SANTANA (voice-over): According to DHS, if the parents have a valid claim, it will be heard by a judge. If not, they will be subject to removal. But
their children say they'll keep fighting until their family is together again.
Y. ENCISO: They're not criminals. They're hardworking people who, I don't know, but I consider my parents my best friends. I know they're going to be
there for me and support me.
SANTANA (voice-over): Maria Santana, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Our thanks, Maria, for that report. And tonight, we are learning new details about U.S. strikes on boats off the coast of Venezuela. U.S.
President Donald Trump touted the latest U.S. military action, if you remember roughly at this time yesterday, he said six people were killed in
the strike and that the vessel was affiliated with what he calls narco- terrorists It's at least the fifth such attack since early September.
In total, the U.S. says 27 people have been killed. You can see there the dates, really, that we see these strikes. But none of the cases in the
White House or into the Pentagon revealed in detail who was on the boats or their intelligence for carrying out the hits. To complicate matters
further, new CNN reporting shows at least one of the strikes targeted Colombian nationals on a boat that had left from Colombia. That is
according to two people briefed by the Pentagon about the strikes.
And just last week, Colombia's president said they had evidence Colombians were attacked and he warned that a new war scenario was opening in the
Caribbean. The White House shot back, saying Gustavo Petro's claims were, quote, "baseless and reprehensible."
Pushback has also come from members of Mr. Trump's own party. A resolution to block the White House from taking further action in the Caribbean was
narrowly shut down in the Senate last week. But many lawmakers continue to sound the alarm. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JIM HIMES (D-CT): Congress is being told nothing on this. And that's OK, apparently, with the Republican majorities in the House and the Senate.
It's not OK with me. I'm going to leave a little bit of a crack in the door here because, again, the White House has not shared what they believe their
legal justification is. They did put out a memo. I will tell you that based on what I know now and the reading of that memo, these are illegal
killings.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, this latest strike is likely to further inflame tensions with Venezuela. President Nicolas Maduro is said to be preparing to declare
a state of emergency to protect his country in the event of an attack by the U.S. This, as U.S. military assets remain in the Caribbean.
I want to bring in our National Security Correspondent Natasha Bertrand. So, Natasha, let's start on this latest strike, then, because there's so
much we do not know. What are you hearing? President Trump at this time yesterday said the vessel was, and I'm quoting, "affiliated with a
designated terrorist organization." He did not name any organization, didn't give say -- give us any other intelligence. What are you hearing on
your side?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So, this would mark the fifth publicly known U.S. military strike on a, quote/unquote,
"drug boat" operating in the Caribbean. But again, it has been very difficult to get any information from the administration about who exactly
they're targeting. Who are these groups that they are saying are affiliated with drug trafficking organizations?
And part of the reason why we're told it's difficult for the administration to say with any certainty is because they don't know the individual
identities of the people on the boats that they are striking. They understand, according to the intelligence that they are gathering, that
these are individuals who are associated with drug cartels, who are possibly carrying drugs on board the boat. But they don't know the
individual identities or just how deep inside these supposed narco trafficking organizations these individuals actually are.
So, all of that said, we've gotten really only a couple of details from the administration about who might be being targeted here. We got a little bit
of an indication from President Trump for the first two strikes in the Caribbean, when he said that they were targeting boats leaving Venezuela.
Ever since then, the administration has been much more vague, saying only that these strikes are targeting people affiliated with drug cartels.
And as we understand now, at least one of the boats that the U.S. has struck over the last month was in fact Colombian, left from Colombia, was
filled with Colombian nationals. Significant, of course, because this not a nation that is typically considered a rogue state, like Venezuela by the
United States. It has a deep economic and security partnership with the U.S.
[14:40:00]
And so, it really signals here that the U.S. military's campaign is widening. And it really is not focused on just one specific cartel from one
specific country. It is a much broader campaign across the region.
SOARES: Yes, and not sharing their intelligence has many people really scratching their heads at this moment. And you heard representative there,
Jim Himes, basically saying that Congress is being told nothing on this. So, just speak to the questions being asked, being raised right now on both
sides of the aisle, not just on the question of intelligence, but also the rationale and the goals here on this war on drugs.
BERTRAND: There are so many questions, including from Republicans, about what legal justification the administration is using for these strikes,
because legal experts, including uniformed members of the military that I spoke to, have questioned repeatedly the legal basis for these U.S.
military strikes, in some cases going as far as to say that they are patently unlawful.
But what we're hearing is that the Justice Department has crafted this very wide-ranging authorization for the military -- for the president, saying
essentially that President Trump has the discretion to authorize these strikes as part of his Article 2 authorities in self-defense of the United
States, because he has declared that the U.S. is in an armed conflict with these drug trafficking groups, and they pose an imminent threat to the
U.S., because they are trafficking drugs to the country that then kill Americans.
And so, legal experts that we spoke to say that it is very much a stretch. It is extremely broad, and it is very open-ended as well. So, it's unclear
how long this authorization could last, and whether it's narrowed at all to specific groups, or if it's virtually any drug trafficking group in the
region. But that is what we're told the administration is relying on now pretty exclusively, Isa.
SOARES: Yes, and I know you'll keep on pushing, Natasha Bertrand. Thank you very much indeed, Natasha.
And still to come tonight, united in grief for a man who came to symbolize unity itself, Kenya mourns the death of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Well, Kenya is mourning the death of a political giant, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. He passed away aged 80. He'd been traveling in
India and collapsed on a morning walk, suffering a cardiac arrest. Odinga ran for Kenya's presidency five times over three decades and is credited
with steering Kenya towards multi-party democracy.
[14:50:00]
And the sense of grief really clears, you've seen there in Nairobi, Kenya has announced a seven-day mourning period. Our Larry Madowo is in Nairobi
with more on Odinga's life as well as his legacy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Many called Raila Odinga the enigma of Kenyan politics, a puzzle and a mystery for so many people. He contested
the presidency five times, lost five times, sometimes in controversial circumstances, and yet remained probably the most consequential political
leader of the last three decades.
When news of his death in southwest India made it here to Kenya, there was weeping and wailing on the streets, some holding branches, a sign of true
respect in Lua culture. You only do that when a great man has fallen. And hundreds gathered at his home here in Nairobi. I asked one of the mourners
who was there why she came.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm here today because Baba has made and impacted our lives as Kenyans, as East Africans, and as Africa in general. He's been the
father of democracy and us as Kenyans, we are enjoying freedom because of Baba. So, today I'm here because Raila is down and it's so painful.
MADOWO: So, when you heard that he had died, you had to come to his home to mourn with the people here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I actually left my work and come right here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MADOWO: She called Raila Odinga Baba, as many of his supporters here did, meaning father, dad, that's how they saw him. And President William Ruto
called him that, the father of democracy in Kenya. He defeated Raila Odinga in 2022 in the election, but ended up working with him, forming what they
termed as a broad-based government. William Ruto, the fourth Kenyan president who had to work with Raila Odinga after contested elections
because of his influence. This how William Ruto described Raila.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM RUTO, KENYAN PRESIDENT: In his passing, we have lost a patriot of uncommon courage, a pan-Africanist, a unifier who sought peace and unity
above power and self-gain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MADOWO: Seven days of national mourning have been declared where Kenyan flags will fly at half-mast and Raila Odinga will receive a full state
funeral. When that happens, he has been eulogized by global leaders from Narendra Modi of India, who described him as a friend of India, to African
leaders like Bola Tinubu of Nigeria, Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, many of them describing him as a towering figure in African politics, one of the
most recognizable leaders. And that was no mean feat for a man who never became president and didn't sit in public office for the last 12 years. His
death leaves a huge gap in Kenyan politics, and what happens next will be all up for grabs. But for now, many taking a moment to honor whom they
consider a great man.
Larry Madowo, CNN, Nairobi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And still to come tonight, London's Natural History Museum showcases nature's most striking moments in its Wildlife Photographer
Awards. We'll speak to the competition's youngest winner about her stunning spider snap.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:50:00]
SOARES: Now, the photography competition that showcases nature's weird, wacky and really wonderful moments has announced its winners. London's
Natural History Museum highlights a huge range of pictures in its Wildlife Photography Awards, from the absurd, like this, one of an orphan and eater.
To the more kind of startling, including this shot of a room full of rattlesnakes with the kids looking on.
Despite the tough competition, the judges chose this photograph of a rare hyena you can see here in an abandoned mining town as the best image out of
more than 60,000 submissions. There were plenty of other amazing pictures besides the grand title winner. This impactful image from Kenya you can see
here, won in the photojournalism category. And it documents scientists attempting to save the northern white rhino from extinction through IVF.
But one of the most kind of standout moments came from Jamie Smart, who took the top spot in the 10 and under category. She snapped an orb weaver
spider sitting, as you can see there beautifully, inside its web. And I'd like to welcome Jamie to the show to speak about her winning photograph.
Jamie, welcome to the show and congratulations on your win.
First of all, 60,000 pictures the judges had to pick and yours was one of them. How does it feel?
JAMIE SMART, WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR, 10 YEARS AND UNDER CATEGORY: Oh, it's -- I'm over the moon. I just can't believe it. It's
unbelievable just to get highly commended, but to be able to win the category is just amazing.
SOARES: You're pinching yourself. Tell me about -- let's talk about the photo here, because your photo is called the weaver's lair, right? Tell us
about how you got that image, Jamie, and how much patience you really needed to capture that moment.
SMART: Well, I've been doing a lot of macro photography over the last year and the benefit with macro photography is that you don't have to rely on
the natural light around you. You can use a flash and diffuser so you can control your own light, which is pretty good because here in Britain, we
can get some quite poor weather. And I always check the weather forecast to make sure there's going to be a good morning and I found that it was a
really cold night, and we got up early and the garden was just full of water droplets.
So, we went out to look for bugs. Then I spotted this little funnel on the top of a dead dock leaf stem and I didn't even see the spider at first. I
just saw this funnel covered in dew droplets. But when I looked closer, I spotted a teeny tiny little spider tucked up trying to keep warm because
it'd been such a cold night. I thought it made a really cute image so I tried to capture it.
I had a little bit of a struggle though trying to get the light to penetrate into the funnel so you could actually see the spider. So, I was
changing my angles and my settings to be able to have the light to get in so you could see the spider, and I did manage to capture this image.
SOARES: It's a beautiful winning image. But you also had -- Jamie, you also had the two photos, I believe, that were highly commended. I think one
was a stag, right? Tell us about the other two images which I believe we have photos of. Tell us about those.
SMART: Yes. So, one picture is a picture of a red deer stag male bellowing in the grass and the other is a picture of a grasshopper. Now, the
grasshopper actually had quite a similar morning to the spider. So, the amazing thing about the grasshopper is that it came out with quite a unique
effect in the image because I spotted him low down in the grass so I sat down to try and capture him.
And what had happened, usually with macro photography, what you get is a black background but with this -- because the sun was so bright usually the
flash overpowers the sun, but because it was so bright, it semi-overpowered my flash and filled in the background with light and also rim-lighted the
grasshopper. So, my flash acted as like a film flash so you could see the details in the grasshopper.
And with the red deer, it was actually -- because I was the youngest ever overall winner for the RSPCA Photography Competition and I went out for two
days photographing with a wildlife photographer called Danny Green photographing the red deer of Bradgate Park.
[14:55:00]
We came across this. One and he's quite a special deer actually because he has over 16 points on his antlers and that means that he's a monarch stag
and that's quite a mature, strong, rare stag type. And he had his arm of females but a younger male came up over the hill to challenge him and he
wasn't happy about it so he was running around and bellowing and running around and bellowing. He got so tired that he had to lay down. And he
continued to bellow while he lay down.
SOARES: And, Jamie, look, it's a fantastic photo. I love this photo of the stag. Look, we've got about 50 seconds or so. Any -- what's your advice?
You're so talented, 10 years of age. What is your advice for other children who want to get into photography? What do you tell them?
SMART: I've got three top tips really. So, patience, understanding your subject and lighting. So, patience is key in photography. Even with a big
animal that can be quite elusive like a leopard or a lion, they can be quite shy. So, you've always got to be like a bush almost.
SOARES: So, patience, tell me another two because we're running out of time. Patience, I should have patience, right?
SMART: Yes, and then understanding your subject. So, you know like where it is, what food it eats and what time of year. And then if you get the
correct lighting, you can get a really nice image.
SOARES: Congratulations, Jamie. You're amazing. Thank you very much. That does it for us. "What We Know" of Max Foster is up next. Meeting up this
time, I'm sure he'll forgive me for that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
