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Isa Soares Tonight
President Trump Says He Is Considering A Massive Attack On Iran; Wildfires Rage Across France And Spain; Israel Prepares For A Large-Scale Operation In The Occupied West Bank After Four Palestinians And Two Israelis Were Killed In Clashes; Palestinians Say Clash happened After Settler Attack; Elders Condemn Deplorable Humanitarian Conditions In Gaz; Rescheduled White House Correspondents' Dinner Tonight; CNN On Front Lines Of Battle For South China Sea; King Charles And Queen Camilla Attend Opening Ceremony; Johnny Depp Surprises Fans As Ebenezer At Comic-Con. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired July 24, 2026 - 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, U.S. President Donald Trump says he is
considering a massive attack on Iran. We'll have the very latest for you as language and strikes across the region escalate.
Then wildfires rage across France and Spain. I'll speak to one person who had to be evacuated. Plus, Israel prepares for a large-scale operation in
the occupied West Bank after four Palestinians and two Israelis were killed in today's clashes. That and much more ahead for you this hour.
I do want to begin first in the United States because U.S. President Donald Trump is now weighing the very dangerous risk of escalating the war with
Iran without a clear end game in sight. The President told "Axios", he is considering, quote, "a massive attack on Iran and is close to making a
decision" -- massive attack and is close to making a decision.
The President, he also says he doesn't believe the Iranians are ready to make a deal right now, because, quote, "they haven't received enough pain
yet." Iran's military says it launched drones at American targets in Bahrain and Jordan as the current phase of the war drags on.
Sirens were also heard in Bahrain earlier. Iranian state media, meanwhile, says a U.S. missile strike targeted Iran's Revolutionary Guard headquarters
and CNN could not independently verify that claim. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted President Trump's invitation to meet next
Tuesday at the White House.
The war with Iran is certain to be as you can imagine, the top of their meeting agenda. Let's get more on these strands for you, CNN's Julia
Benbrook is in Washington for us, and our Fred Pleitgen, who is reporting extensively, as you know, from inside Iran, joins us now.
Julia, let me go to you first, and really on those comments by President Trump taking this to potentially an unprecedented level when he talks about
considering a massive attack, bigger than ever before. What more can you tell us about this? Because he has made similar bombastic threats before.
JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He has made comments throughout the conflict that sometimes have led to that further escalation, sometimes have
led to a pull-back. So, keeping an eye on all of that. And then during that interview, he said that he has not yet made a decision and did not give a
timeline for that determination on if that would go further.
But there have now been 13 consecutive nights of U.S. strikes, as well as waves of Iranian drones and missiles fired at a widening number of targets
in countries with U.S. bases. And this recent escalation kind of started again as Iran had targeted ships in the Strait of Hormuz a couple of weeks
ago.
And as Trump said that he believed that the ceasefire was, quote, "over". And now, in recent days, he signaled that he is not quite ready to
negotiate a new ceasefire agreement at this time after the days and days of consecutive strikes, he said that they may need more of the same.
He also continued to claim that Iran wants to come to the table and negotiate, but that he believes that they are not quite ready, and
reiterated the point that he has made throughout this conflict, that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.
And all of this is happening just over a month ago, there was what appeared to be a diplomatic breakthrough. The signing of the Memorandum of
Understanding, both by the United States and Iran, which was supposed to kick off this 60-day time period for negotiations for technical talks on
Iran's nuclear program, addressing issues like the fate of its stockpile of highly-enriched uranium.
But Trump has also said recently that in his view, that the Memorandum of Understanding is, quote, "over as well". But he continues to try and paint
an optimistic view, telling Americans that he believes the United States is doing extremely well when it comes to this conflict.
Polling, though, pushes back on that a bit, and recent "Fox News" poll says that the majority of Americans, 56 percent in their polling, do not approve
of the U.S. military action that is taking place there in Iran right now.
And then on where United States and Israel stand on all of this, as you pointed out, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who is expected to
meet with Trump at the White House on Tuesday.
[14:05:00]
A lot of conversations as this continues to escalate at this point.
SOARES: Indeed. Stay with us, Julia. Let me bring in Fred into the conversation. And Fred, you know, as Julia was saying, we're seeing the
tit-for-tat clearly continuing, now 13 days in, I was looking -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan all hearing sirens ringing out this Friday.
What are you hearing -- well tapped in to what's happening in Iran, you often report from Tehran. What are you hearing from inside Iran? Are they
preparing for this escalation that President Trump is talking about here?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Isa, well, I think they've been preparing for something like this for a very long time.
One of the things that we have to understand is when Iran signed the Memorandum of Understanding, they never really trusted the diplomatic
process.
And they did say that they would be prepared to retaliate, should there be escalation on the part of the United States, especially if you look at, for
instance, the military leadership in Iran, they from the very beginning said that they would be prepared if there were, as they put it, violations
of the ceasefire.
And if you look at right now, some of the rhetoric that's been coming out of the White House with President Trump saying that he's possibly getting
ready for some sort of escalation, the Iranians are clearly saying they're not going to back down in the face of that.
They are ready for that. And they also say, quite frankly, that it's not going to change anything as far as the Strait of Hormuz is concerned, that
the Iranians are still going to be able to project power into the Strait of Hormuz, control the Strait of Hormuz, at the same time, also, of course,
project power into the region as well.
One of the things that we've been seeing between the Trump administration and the Iranian leadership over the past couple of days is sort of a
trading not just of blows on the military field, but also of threats as well, with President Trump saying that if the Iranians continue to hit, for
instance, tankers and other ships in the Strait of Hormuz and in general in the Gulf area, that the U.S. would start hitting bridges and possibly power
plants for each ship that's hit.
Well, the Iranians have said if the U.S. are going to hit critical infrastructure inside Iran, that the Iranians would start doing exactly the
same thing, for instance, in the Gulf region. You look, for instance, at energy infrastructure there.
You look at desalination plants on both sides of the Gulf. Obviously, that's something that could lead to a very dangerous situation in that
area, and certainly also, something that the Gulf states are very concerned about as well.
The Iranians say the core for them right now to -- if there's a chance to get this Memorandum of Understanding back on track, is the situation in the
Strait of Hormuz. They're taking a very hard line.
They're saying they're taking a very hardline on controlling the Strait of Hormuz, controlling the shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz,
defining those shipping lanes, and essentially saying that they believe that the Memorandum of Understanding gives them the sole power to define
how the Strait of Hormuz is governed, at least in the first part, until a broader agreement can be reached.
Now, they say they're not backing down from that. The U.S. is going to have to accept that, but of course, as we can see right now, that's something
that's definitely a big point of contention between those two sides, as now we're looking at almost two weeks of two sides trading blows there in the
Gulf area.
And of course, all of this, Isa, one of the things we have to keep in mind, this is also having a devastating effect on the population in Iran,
obviously, not being able to move forward from that war footing. But still, a lot of people having trouble with the economy as well, a lot of civilians
also have been killed, the Iranians say.
And the strikes that the U.S. has conducted for the past two weeks. So, it seems as though the longer this goes on, and the more devastating the
strikes on both sides get, the more difficult it could be to get back to diplomacy.
Even though, Iran's Foreign Ministry has said that they are still open for diplomacy and continue -- and continue to consider that a viable avenue.
SOARES: Yes, I'm glad you brought it back to the people, so important. We often forget, of course, what they're going through inside Iran. But quite
rightly, as you just said, and Julia just said, we're hearing more retaliation, more escalation rather than diplomacy right now.
Fred, great to see you, Julia, thank you very much indeed, really appreciate it. And you've heard the view there from Iran and really the
perspective from the U.S. Well, the increasingly volatile situation that we are seeing in the region, it is sparking fears that there may soon be a
major price surge in the global oil markets.
Oil prices actually dipping a bit today below that $100 a barrel mark. But the newest supply concern moving forward, a Houthi -- we're talking about
yesterday, if you remember, at the top of the show, Houthi blockade in the Red Sea.
You're seeing now where the prices are just below $100 or so barrel for Brent Crude, as well as WTI crude. I do have some breaking news coming in
to CNN, and actually breaking news from The Hague. We are following reports that International Criminal Court, the ICC member states have voted to
dismiss the court's chief prosecutor.
[14:10:00]
"Reuters" and "The Associated Press" cite diplomatic sources saying the vote happened just a short time ago. Karim Khan was facing allegations of
sexual misconduct as the war crimes court comes under scrutiny by Washington.
The U.S., which is not a member, has imposed sanctions on multiple ICC judges and prosecutors, including Khan citing the ICC's arrest warrants
against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister of any wrongdoing.
So, that breaking news coming in to us from the International Criminal Court member states voting to dismiss the court's chief prosecutor. That
is, according to "Reuters" and "The Associated Press", "AP", citing diplomatic sources. We'll stay on top of that breaking news story.
Any more developments, of course, we'll bring it to your attention. I want to turn your attention, though, to Europe, because tens of thousands of
people have been evacuated from a tourist hotspot in southwest France has been evacuated from a tourist hotspot in southwest France as wildfires
continue to cause devastation.
We've seen fast-moving fires threatening the Cap Ferret Peninsula, and that's near Bordeaux. It only has one access road, so authorities didn't
want to take any chances. Spain has now declared a national emergency as a massive wildfire test through the central part of the country. Melissa Bell
is following all the developments for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As wildfires grip this tourism hotspot in southwestern France, locals in a nearby port
watch as ominous red sky marks the terror taking place across the bay. French authorities ordered the total evacuation of the Hamptons Lege Cap
Ferret Peninsula on Friday.
The wildfire that had devastated thousands of hectares already doubled overnight, according to local authorities. There's only one road linking
the Cap Ferret to the outside world. Some 40,000 people use that to evacuate with a few hundred taking boats to the Port of Carcassonne on the
other side of the bay.
Not far away, another wildfire is also raging in the Landes region around the town of Biscarrosse --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
BELL: Where 23,000 people were evacuated. This local resident says it's worrying, and it's worrying because the whole neighborhood where I live has
been evacuated, so we're in doubt, wondering, are we OK? Has everything burned?
Another woman from the nearby Landes region said fear had begun to spread overnight on Thursday. "We're all starting to panic a little now, to be
honest", she says. "We spent the whole day not really knowing what was going on. And now that night has fallen, and it's really red. We can feel
that it's right next to us."
French President Emmanuel Macron called the situation very tense, particularly in Gironde, adding that France had requested the activation of
the European Union's civil protection mechanism.
France is battling 32 wildfires of varying sizes, according to the Interior Minister, including this large one in the southern Val(ph) region. "It
really is a disaster, when you arrive here, it feels apocalyptic. It's as if we're no longer in this world, but in another one", she says.
Spain is also facing the consequences of successive heatwaves and parched conditions, with residents in some towns near Madrid also forced to
evacuate because of wildfires. They've become a regular feature of European Summers, but this year, the continent's forest fire information system says
that it has seen far more land burnt than the annual average for the same period normally.
This after record-breaking climate change driven heatwaves turned the landscape into a tinderbox. Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Well, let's get more on this. Bordeaux local Pierre Claudel was camping at Cap Ferret when he was forced to evacuate. And he joins me now.
Pierre, thank you very much for being with us. Just give us a sense, first of all, what you saw and where you are right now.
PIERRE CLAUDEL, WITNESS TO WILDFIRE: Hello, I am now in Bordeaux. What I saw is a lot of -- a lot of smoke everywhere, some like red night in the
Wednesday, the night from Wednesday to Thursday. It was really scary.
SOARES: Were there a lot -- give us a sign -- a sense, Pierre, of the scale. How big? I know France, Spain, Portugal often sees at this time of
the year, wildfires. How does this compare to things from previous years, from what you saw, the scale of it?
CLAUDEL: If -- I haven't seen something that big. If we look at the map, it's big as the city of Bordeaux, even bigger now.
[14:15:00]
And also, now where there is a lot of wildfires in the same time in the same area. You have one in the north and then in the south, you have
another one next to Biscarrosse. So, it's really scary now. There's -- it's really huge. Yes.
SOARES: Yes, and as you were talking, Pierre, we are looking at your video that you sent to my team, and we can see a huge plume -- I mean, the sky
looks absolutely red, as you can see. You --I'm -- you were camping there. Is that right?
Where did the -- where did the -- were the majority of people moved? Where did -- where did the majority of people go? Because it looks terrifying
what we're looking at.
CLAUDEL: Yes, the first thing is that we were in a camp site during the day, and when the fire started and we saw it from far away, we didn't know
if it was controlled or not because we can see sometimes some fires that are controlled, that it's fine.
SOARES: Yes --
CLAUDEL: But we didn't know, and we looked at the forecast for the wind, and we saw that there will be a lot of wind and in our direction. So, we
decided to move before the government told us to leave. So, for us, we decided to --
SOARES: Yes --
CLAUDEL: Go more close to the city, because we were too close to the -- to the ocean. And it was just one single road. And at the time when --
SOARES: Yes, and that, I mean, that --
CLAUDEL: We were moved in the night -- we were --
SOARES: Go ahead, can you just finish, go ahead --
CLAUDEL: Just -- we were just in the city, and yes, the -- a guy knocked at our camper van, and said, hey, you have to leave. The police is coming to
every house to evacuate.
SOARES: And something you said, it's the wind, right? It was moving so quickly. What are you hearing from others in the -- in the area? What are
people -- what are people doing given just how wide this is, and how big this is. How are people reacting to this? Where are they going?
CLAUDEL: Yes, the people are really scared, and we are really -- there is no word to say how a place was beautiful, and all this thing is now
burning. And also, for like the forests and the wildlife, but also now it's attacking the houses.
And I have some -- a lot of friends that have houses in the area, and they lost or we don't know now, but I think they lost their house and all their
belongings. It's really hard to see this horrible thing coming. It's really fast and big.
SOARES: Yes, it is -- yes, it's -- it is terrifying as we look at these images and given the wind, how quickly it's moving and you're saying one
road, very scary indeed. Pierre, really appreciate you taking the time to speak to us. Please stay safe, stay in touch with the team. Thank you very
much indeed.
And if you're out there in France, anyone in that area and in Spain as well, please stay safe. Thank you very much, Pierre, appreciate it.
CLAUDEL: Thank you.
SOARES: Now, I want to take you to Ukraine because Ukrainian drones -- you're very welcome -- are hunting for more than just oil and gas, shifting
their campaign against Russia's economy into a new phase.
Russian officials are reporting more strikes on warehouses belonging to the retailer Wildberries. The firm had been called -- has been called Russia's
Amazon. The latest attacks around St. Petersburg may have destroyed millions of dollars in inventory.
And this comes as Ukraine reports ten people killed in a fresh round of Russian strikes in the Kyiv region. And still to come right here on the
show, it has been a month since the pair of earthquakes devastated Venezuela. Why so many missing people still not have been found.
Then later, Israeli human rights groups warn that Palestinians could face mass pogroms in the West Bank after a deadly confrontation near Nablus.
Both of those stories after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:20:00]
SOARES: Well, it has now been one month since two deadly earthquakes devastated Venezuela. They killed more than 5,200 people, and that is
according to official figures. But experts in the U.S. say the final death toll could be at least twice as much.
The reality is we may never learn the true count. Recovery efforts are taking place in La Guaira, one of the hardest-hit areas. People are still
searching for their missing loved ones, including this Venezuelan woman living in Chile who is looking for her mother.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILAGRIS RODRIGUEZ, SEARCHING FOR HER MOTHER (through translator): Since the day of the tremor or the earthquake, rather, I have not heard anything
from her. I have not been able to find her since then. I have looked for her in hospitals in Caracas and in every place, people told me she might
be. I went to the place where the dead are being taken, and still nothing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, a young woman who just finished high school in Florida is hoping to reunite with her sister after their mother was killed in last
month's earthquake. CNN's Carolina Peguero has her story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROLINA PEGUERO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just weeks ago, Antonella Narvaez was celebrating her high school graduation surrounded by her
friends and family, her --
ANTONELLA NARVAEZ, MOTHER KILLED IN VENEZUELAN EARTHQUAKE: I want to honor my mom in the way that just to make my sister happy. That's all. Because my
mom, she will always make my sister happy, so, that would be the way.
PEGUERO: Antonella shares it was just a normal day on June 24th, she had spent the day talking to her mom, Chloe(ph) sent her younger half-sister,
Isabella, who both had decided to move this Summer back to La Guaira.
A. NARVAEZ: Just chatting with my mom through WhatsApp, and then I sent her one last message, hoping for her to reply. She never replied. I don't -- I
don't really know how to feel or how to manage this whole situation.
PEGUERO: Things rapidly took a turn when she didn't hear back from any of them after the earthquakes struck the nation. Hours later, the family back
home in Tampa were notified her mother and her husband had died under the rubble while Isabella had been rescued by neighbors, but had suffered
several injuries.
A. NARVAEZ: My sister and I were always together, we were always -- we always have like this really strong bond. And of course, right now, we're
not together, and that makes it really tough for me to be there for her.
NOEL NARVAEZ, FATHER OF ANTONELLA NARVAEZ: We are trying to do the best that we can do with the tools that we have.
PEGUERO: Antonella's father, Noel, commits to providing a stable home, support and love to 12-year-old Isabella that lost both her parents, and
that, has been in Venezuela since then under the care of extended family.
N. NARVAEZ: We are here for her. If she is listening or if she is watching us, we are here willing to provide all the support that she needs.
[14:25:00]
PEGUERO: Aunts and uncles back in the states have also offered their help in raising their nieces together like they promised their mother.
MARIELA GARI, AUNT OF ANTONELLA NARVAEZ (through translator): She told me if she was no longer here, that I would become Antonella and Isabella's
mother. And wow, although it's a difficult challenge and big shoes to fill, I will do everything in my power to help raise them.
PEGUERO: And as the family gathers around Antonella and she checks in on her sister and her recovery, they plead to the Trump administration to help
them make a sister's dream come true of being together once again.
N. NARVAEZ: We really would like to have some support from the government with a visa or any other kind of relief that led us, you know, reunify this
family.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And our thanks to Carolina Peguero for that report. And still to come tonight, Israel's Prime Minister is vowing to settle the score after
deadly clashes in the West Bank. We'll talk about the spiraling violence with a former Irish President, Mary Robinson. That is just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back, everyone. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says security forces in the occupied West Bank will operate freely and at
full strength, his words, as they prepare for a major military operation. He vows they will settle accounts, also his words, after a deadly
confrontation involving Palestinian settlers and -- Palestinians, I should say, settlers and soldiers.
Palestinians say settlers attacked a town near Nablus today, the IDF says the settlers were on an unauthorized and uncoordinated hike when clashes
broke out with local residents. Four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers were killed by gunfire.
I do want to warn you, the next video about to show you is disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(FEMALE WAILING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: The girl crouching as you see there over this body is screaming "baba," Arabic for father. Palestinian officials say the four Palestinians
killed were all members of the same family. A local doctor says several people were injured as well. Have a listen.
[14:30:27]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): In the early hours of today, dozens of Israeli settlers entered the village from the eastern side. They
approached the houses and attacked one home before moving toward the southwestern part of the village, where another attack took place.
Confrontations then broke out between the settlers and local residents. The settlers attacked the villagers and opened fire, causing the martyrdom of
four residents and injuring several others.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, Israeli troops are now imposing curfews and setting up checkpoints as they await reinforcements. Mr. Netanyahu says he's ordered
settlements accelerated, making no mention of the latest settler rampages that happened elsewhere in the West Bank today. Homes and cars were charred
in the attacks. The Palestine Red Crescent says at least eight people were injured, six by gunfire. While more than a dozen Israeli human rights
groups issued a statement saying the world must intervene now to prevent pogroms by settler militias and soldiers right across the West Bank.
Well, our next guest just visited the region as a member of the elders. Mary Robinson is a former Irish president and former U.N. High Commissioner
for Human Rights. She says, "Palestine could literally disappear." Mary joins us now, well-known face on the show. Mary, good to have you back on
the show.
Look, I do want to start, if I may, if you don't mind, with this latest attack in the West Bank where once again we are seeing deadly violence,
escalating, settle attacks. You have just been there. What did you see that most concerned you about the direction that things are going?
MARY ROBINSON, MEMBER, THE ELDERS: What concerned us is what we're actually witnessing this morning, this incident of settlers apparently going on an
unauthorized hike into a village. We know what that means. The aggressive way it's done, the hate speech that supports it. It's no longer a matter of
individual settlers. It's a policy now. It's a policy of getting rid of Palestinians from villages and, you know, literally obliterating the West
Bank over time.
And we saw similar incidents. Indeed we visited a village where there was, you know, a military barracks nearby and the village -- the IDF would march
into the village quite often and threw tear gas into the school on one occasion and they were terrified. The women we spoke to wouldn't use their
individual cars anymore, would only go out on a bus together out of the village. There were pal -- Israeli flags planted all the way up a road, the
only road leading into the village in the middle of the West Bank. It was as if we were in Israel. It's very aggressive stuff. It's very overt.
It's -- you know, it's so different even from when I was there three years ago with Ban Ki-moon. But we did see what we began to call settler
terrorism. But this is much more part of an overall policy. And you know, we concluded as elders that the government of Prime Minister Netanyahu and
in particular Ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir aim to make Palestine disappear physically, economically, culturally, and politically.
And what we saw today was an example of a provocation. And now we're going to see a backlash. A backlash against that village and probably against
neighbors itself nearby an excuse. And we saw yesterday a prov provocation of religious sort Ben-Gvir going in with over a thousand extremist settlers
into a holy site in East Jerusalem. Not settlers but Jewish extremists going into a Muslim holy site to provoke. And we actually saw that they are
seeking to take over the holy sites.
SOARES: And Mary, look, let me just add some context to our viewers because the latest U.N. figures -- I'm just going to give you those views to our
viewers -- show there have been more than 1,300 Israeli settle attacks in the West Bank this year That's well ahead of last year's pace. Yet, I'm
going to play to you -- I'm going to show you what Israeli Prime Minister told my colleague Dana Bash recently after a different settler attack not
related to this one. Have a listen to this, Mary.
[18:35:02]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: I know, and I've heard you say these are just thugs, but my question is if they're just thugs, why won't or can't you stop them?
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER, ISRAEL: Well, we do actually. It's about 100 -- it's actually 150 or so what you would call juvenile
delinquents. They're not, by the way, from the settler community. They're overwhelmingly upstanding citizens. They serve in the army. They're law-
abiding. And unfortunately, they're attacked by Palestinian terrorists on the roads. They massacre families. So, there is -- it's not that community.
It is actually 150 or so kids, teenagers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And Mary, as this was playing out, I could see that you were shaking your head. What did you make of that? I mean, juvenile delinquents.
Where does accountability lie? You were talking to me earlier about policy here, this becoming policy.
ROBINSON: Yes. You know that is the excuse we're hearing that these are juvenile delinquents and only a few etcetera. It's absolutely not the case.
It's a case starting with hate speech that dehumanizes Palestinians, hate speech by ministers. They wouldn't be able to use that language in most
governments in the world. I mean it's shocking.
And the rampant way in which settlers are now attacking the Israeli flags all over the West Bank, the sort of -- we were so aware of it being a
policy now, policy led by this government. And we know the members of this government. We know their extremist views and that is not an excuse. We --
you know, were very concerned. We went to Brussels to make the case that the E.U. must do more. I really hope they will listen now because what we
said is being played out in real time yesterday and today, the provocations and the responses.
The most worrying issue is the plans for tenders to construct millions of thousands of houses in the E1 settlement area. And that E1 area has always
been a red line beyond belief of presidents down from President Bill Clinton right down until now, a red, red line. Now, when it was initially
announced there was push back from European and other countries and it was paused, it's now reopened because they feel very empowered.
There's no -- there's complete impunity and they opening for tenders on the 5th of August and it will close on the 5th of October before this election.
If it closes, there are third-party rights, it'll be much harder to the -- and then it will seal off East Jerusalem. It will cut the West Bank in
half. And this is all part of a plan and we need the E.U. to use its trade measures -- its trade measures article two of the Israeli Europe trade
association, you know, requires respect for human rights but also a number of EU countries to their credit including my own have decided to move on
the no trade with settlements. And that at least should be an E.U. wide move.
There is no time to lose. This is shocking and I would hate to see handwringing when it's all over. I think it would make me, you know,
explode with a kind of anger that steps are not taken that could be taken.
SOARES: Yes, absolutely. And look, you were talking about language used by some of these ministers. And I do want to share one what we've heard
because following today's attack at the Palestinian village of Tell, far right finance minister you all know Bezalel Smotrich for the wrong reasons
called for the demolition of Palestinian villages. Over the weekend, if you remember, our correspondent Nic Robertson covered this. We saw we saw
Smotrich as well as the security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, leading thousands of Israeli settlers and activists to the Gaza perimeter demanding
the reestablishment, Mary, of free settlements in northern Gaza. This was just over the weekend. We're playing that video now.
You were talking about senior ministers when they use this kind of language and the impact this has. But these are the figures at the highest levels of
Israeli government openly advocating for more settlements and in some cases the removal of Palestinian communities. That doesn't bode very well for any
sort of political solution here, Mary.
[14:40:12]
ROBINSON: No. The only solution is to end the impunity, have some accountability. And that is why we went to the European Union and to say
you of the levers of trade and you can do it by qualified majority. And that is what you need to do now in order to check. And also, we learned --
SOARES: Mary, what about the United States here? I know you've mentioned the E.U., but where is the United States in this? Where is President Trump?
Are these questions being asked? Is he being pressed on this?
ROBINSON: Well, it would be very welcome if President Trump would turn his attention even momentarily to what is happening both in the West Bank and
in East Jerusalem, but also in Gaza, the shrinking space and the humanitarian awful situation. Yes, there's enough food to keep people
alive, but that's about it. And it's -- and there's no entry of materials to help rebuild schools, clinics, hospitals, etcetera. So, you know, it
would be very good if President Trump would pay more attention, but he seems very focused on another war that he's not able to end, an illegal war
started by President Trump and Israel which now has closed the Strait of Hormuz causing great suffering in other countries around the world. Higher
prices, lack of fertilizer, maybe food prices beginning to go up. And so, the world is in a difficult position.
And we chose to try to get the European Union which was founded on a rules- based charter of the United Nations cited in its -- in its core document and, you know, having provisions like article two in the Israeli-Europe
trade association. They could -- they could suspend the trade pillar by a qualified majority. This has been made clear by the legal service of the
council.
And I hope that they have listened to us. I hope -- I really plead with them. Look what's happening.
SOARES: Yes.
ROBINSON: It's happening on your watch for goodness' sake.
GALLAGHER: Mary, do let us know what you hear back from the European Union. We'll be very keen to know what they -- how they respond and what action
they take. Good to see you, Mary. I always appreciate you taking the time to speak to us. Mary Robinson there. Thank you.
We're going to take a short break. We'll see you on the other side. Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:13]
SOARES: President Donald Trump is set to speak at the rescheduled White House Correspondents' Dinner tonight. The original event, if you remember,
in April was shut down because of a shooting. Tonight's dinner will be in a new venue with a new security plan and some key figures in Trump's orbit
won't be there. The First Lady, Vice President, and Secretary of State all say they can't make it.
The White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says the speech will be unifying yet vicious. I don't know how you can have both. But Donald Trump
is of course someone who has been notoriously combative, even insulting to the media.
With more on that, let's chat with CNN's Chief Media Analyst, Brian Stelter. So, Brian, I honestly don't know how you can have unifying yet
vicious. So, give us a sense of what this dynamic is going to be like because the tension, the rifts between the press and President Trump,
they've gotten worse.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Yes, they definitely have. So, maybe it'll be a first time for everything sort of situation, but I don't
expect a unifying theme. I do expect some vicious barbs because that's in keeping with the president's rhetoric for the past decade. You know, he
infamously called the American news media the enemy of the people in 2017.
And while he's backed away from that particular phrase during his return to office, he has now really used his government not to use words undermine
the media but actually to apply actions. So, he has weaponized his federal agencies to target the media in various ways, whether that's the FCC
investigating media companies and challenging licenses or whether it's Justice Department sending subpoenas, court orders to newsrooms. So, that's
going to be the mood music for this evening. Not a very jovial kind of music for this event.
A lot of people are asking why this is going on at all. This is an annual dinner where traditionally the president has shown up and both sides have
roasted and toasted each other and it's been a relatively light-hearted affair. It used to be criticized even before Trump took office for being
too cozy. It was a bad look according to many outsiders. But now, with Trump in office, he has boycotted this dinner in all the past years. This
is the first time he has agreed to attend in a decade. So, there are questions about why that is.
Does he feel like the press has been in some ways neutered and that's why he's comfortable showing up? I don't think that's the case, but that's some
of the kind of the conversation that's going on with this dinner. And the fact that it was marred by violence last April and now it's being
rescheduled, there's certainly a lot of you know, widespread view that that's a good thing, that a -- that a gunman shouldn't get a veto and have
the final word. So, it does make sense for this to be reorganized and rescheduled. But the idea that the president's going to be up there making
vicious comments about the press, well, it's going to it might not be a good look.
SOARES: Yes. And you write here -- written in the piece that you've written for CNN.com. I'm just going to read part of it. And you touched on this a
bit just there in your answer. "With both words and actions, the Trump administration has sought to weaken the news media, often under the guise
of challenging biased coverage and restoring trust."
I mean, with this intimidation and this weaponization that you were just talking about then, why is this -- why is there even a dinner? I don't -- I
don't mean to be disrespectful at all, but why are journalists even showing up?
STELTER: I've asked Weijia Jiang this question. She was the president of the association for the past year. Her term just ended, but she's
organizing this event. She says she's trying to bring the temperature down, trying to repair the strained relations between the president and the
press. And the idea is if you can get everybody in the same room, that can be a good thing.
I understand that as a con -- as a concept. It makes sense and we can see that in lots of other fields, not just in the media that it does make sense
in theory. But whether it works in reality is very much an open question.
This is an administration that wants to use its power to weaken the American press. But the good news, as I see it, is that those efforts have
largely failed. Look at yesterday, the New York Times fighting back in court against subpoenas and prevailing. The Times saying it won't be
intimidated. You know, chilling effect only works if people are willing to be chilled. And for the most part in the U.S., we have not seen that
actually happen for the past year and a half. So, maybe in some ways this dinner will actually celebrate the enduring power of the American Press
Corps despite all of Trump's attempts to weaken that power.
SOARES: Yes. Hear, hear. Brian, great to see you. Thank you very much indeed.
We're going to take a short break. Do stay right here with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:52:11]
SOARES: While new tariffs in the war with Iran are not the only things disrupting global trade, another dispute could make matters worse in the
South China Sea where one-third of global trade passes transits -- passes transits every year. A standoff between the Philippines and China is
heating up over a tiny a toll nautical miles or roughly 220 kilometers, you're seeing there, off the Philippines coast.
CNN's Ivan Watson was aboard a Philippine government vessel not far from Scarborough Shoal when a confrontation happened. Have a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Right now, we're looking at a China Coast Guard ship that's operating in very close
proximity to a ship from the Philippines government, from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Both of these ships are operating in
disputed waters close to Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea. Both Manila and Beijing claim that uninhabited rock for themselves.
China has effectively, which with its much larger fleet, controlled it and boxed out the Philippines from it for years. And yet the Philippines with
much smaller resources and a much smaller fleet are demonstrating that they are not going to relinquish their claim to that area.
This is a flash point in the South China Sea. There are a number of similar disputes. And you can see just how close the Chinese vessel is to the
Philippine ship. Both sides have been issuing warnings to each other, repeating that they claim that they are operating legally in these
contested waters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have entered the waters of the People's Republic of China.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're unsafe maneuver and dangerous actions against the Government of the Philippines.
WATSON: These types of confrontations happen all the time, daily, weekly. They've been going on for years and we're getting a rare view at how close
these large ships operate to each other.
We're being told we need to step inside. All right, the Chinese ship has moved within meters of the Philippine boat and is now actually hitting the
ship with its water cannon. Now, a definite escalation shortly before 8:00 a.m. local time. And now it looks like our ship is taking a turn away from
the Chinese ship.
I'm Ivan Watson reporting from the South China Sea.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[14:55:10]
SOARES: Our thanks to Ivan for that report.
Well, Britain's King Charles and Queen Camila have made their appearance at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games. Many shook hands with the
king, but a unicorn received the biggest hello from Charles, who touched the nose of Finny, the games' official mascot. The games are being held in
Glasgow, Scotland. Thousands of athletes from dozens of countries will compete. There he is.
And finally, for you tonight, there are no scrooches allowed at this year's annual Comic-Con convention except one. Johnny Depp surprised fans at a
pop-up Scrooge and Marley shop as Ebenezer Scrooge, staying in character as he spoke there to fans and spectators on the street. Depp later appeared in
character at the convention center and showed fans a trailer of his upcoming movie, Ebenezer.
The annual Comic-Con International Festival is the largest pop culture festival in the world. The sold-out convention features the latest from
movies to television, video games, and of course, comics. It runs through Sunday in San Diego, California.
That does it for us for this hour. Thanks very much for your company. Do stay right here. "WHAT WE KNOW" with Max Foster is up next. Have a
wonderful weekend.
END
