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One World with Zain Asher

Several Killed After 6.8 Magnitude Quake Strikes Japan; Firefighters Battling Flames In Southwestern France; Trump And Netanyahu Meeting Amid Tensions Over Ongoing Iran War; FAA: Seats Need To Be Fixed On 453 U.S.- Registered Jets; Tate Brothers To Stay In Jail As They Fight Extradition; CNN Talks To Former Israeli PM Naftali Bennett; Aired 12-1p ET

Aired July 28, 2026 - 12:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:00:31]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking news.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Live from New York, I'm Bianna Golodryga. Zain is off today. You are watching the second hour of

"One World."

Several people have been killed in Southern Japan after a shopping mall partially collapsed in an explosion triggered by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake

on Tuesday. That is according to reports by a CNN affiliate.

Previous reports said 20 to 30 employees of the Aeon Mall were unreachable. Footage shows emergency crews hard at work racing to rescue survivors.

At least 50 people have been injured and the tremor has left 46,000 homes without power. Thousands have been ordered to leave their homes over fears

of landslides and aftershocks.

For the latest, let's bring in CNN's Hanako Montgomery. What more do we know about the search and rescue efforts, Hanako?

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Bianna. We know that the Japanese prime minister has deployed thousands of self-defense force troops

to help with those rescue efforts.

And most of them are concentrated in Kumamoto Prefecture, which is unfortunately seeing most of the damage due to that earthquake and also

subsequent aftershocks.

In fact, the chief cabinet secretary of Japan has also warned residents in Kumamoto Prefecture to be aware of any subsequent shocks that might cause

further damage, saying that really there is about a week still left of being vigilant of staying, on top of things, and making sure that residents

can get the safety when needed.

Listen to Kihara just now during the press conference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MINORU KIHARA, JAPANESE CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY (through translator): We ask everyone to remain alert for the possibility of further earthquakes of

up to seismic intensity of seven.

In particular, residents in areas that experienced the strongest shaking are urged to remain calm, closely following evacuation information issued

by local authorities through radio, television, the internet, and other official channels and act accordingly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MONTGOMERY: Now, Bianna, what we've been seeing in Kumamoto Prefecture, so far, we've seen a large mall partially collapsed. And we do know that at

the time of this collapse, about 200 individuals were rescued from the mall that were evacuated from the mall. But authorities do fear that potentially

several employees are still stuck inside and might need rescuing.

Now, we don't actually know what caused this mall to partially collapse, but authorities are investigating an explosion that happened right after an

earthquake, and they are looking at potential gas leak that might have triggered that explosion.

Now, in other parts of the prefecture, we've also seen roads damaged, bridges partially damaged as well. Fires breaking out across the

prefecture. And in one case, a train also that was overturned.

Now, fortunately, there weren't any passengers on board at the time, but it does show you how powerful this initial earthquake was and also the

subsequent aftershocks.

Now, we're also getting reports, Bianna, that a paper factory in another part of Kumamoto Prefecture, is getting some reports of people unaccounted

for inside that factory. They can't make contact with those individuals. So, they are trying to ascertain whether those individuals might be trapped

or need rescuing.

Now, again, Bianna, as I mentioned, the Japanese government deploying thousands of troops to this region to help with rescue efforts.

And Japan, I should note, is no stranger to earthquakes. It sees an earthquake every single day, but earthquakes of this magnitude can cause

significant damage and potentially loss of life.

And for Kumamoto Prefecture specifically, there is history here, right? In 2016, we saw massive earthquakes that killed more than 270 people and

injured thousands more. So, authorities are very, very concerned that history might repeat itself and that we might see potentially an increase

in the death toll in the coming hours, Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: Not to mention potential aftershocks.

Hanako Montgomery, thank you.

For more on this, I'm joined now by Jeffrey Park. He's a seismologist and professor of Earth and planetary scientists -- Sciences at Yale University.

Good to see you again. We had you on in the last hour.

For viewers who are just joining us, this earthquake was initially measured, I believe, at 7.1 magnitude. It was then downgraded to 6.8, still

very, very strong. Put that into perspective for us. How much energy is that?

JEFFREY PARK, SEISMOLOGIST: Well, this is enough energy that if you could imagine that you could have like a 24-kilometer square of a fault zone that

moved a meter or more. That's -- that's about the kind of energy that gets -- gets released in this.

[12:05:12]

This is a -- a tremendous -- a tremendous amount of -- of shaking and -- and energy release. This is -- this is kind of typical for moderate

earthquakes, what seismologist would call a moderate earthquake. But because it was fairly shallow, 10 kilometers depth, and also in an inland

area, not offshore, as most of the Japanese subduction earthquakes are located, it's instead was on a -- a -- a sheer fault that was inland of the

main subduction thrust, that -- that it's potential for causing a great deal more damage is -- is -- is connected.

This is similar to -- to earthquakes back in -- in Kyoto, back a few decades ago.

GOLODRYGA: Well, and as we just heard from Hanako, this is almost exactly where we saw deadly earthquake that killed nearly 300 people in 2016. That

area was hit by large aftershocks two days before even -- even a bigger quake struck.

Can you just talk about how much concern there is right now and perhaps advancement in science and technology that experts can turn to -- to -- to

avoid a similar consequence here?

PARK: Well -- well -- well, what we do know almost we've known since we've started to record these large earthquakes, you know, decades ago, is that

there will be a set of aftershocks that typically have smaller magnitudes in the main shock and that they decay away days, hours, weeks, and -- and

so.

However, every earthquake that occurs will release stresses on the fault that moves, but can increase stresses on unbroken faults that are all

around it. And often, this takes time for the next earthquake to occur, but you've increased the stresses on nearby faults.

The Kumamoto fault earthquake of 10 years ago very likely increased the stresses on the fault segment that ruptured today.

If you look on the maps from back in 2016 and -- and today's earthquake, you can see that their epicenters are about 10 kilometers apart. They're

not completely on top of each other. In fact, the earlier earthquake was directly under the major metropolitan area of Kumamoto. And this one is a

little bit to the south -- to the southwest.

But the fact that they're so close together means that -- that the stresses released or increased by the 2016 earthquake influenced the one that

happened today.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. And as you told me the last hour, this is almost certainly the same fault system as well.

The Japan Meteorological --

PARK: Yes, definitely.

GOLODRYGA: The Japan Meteorological Agency initially ordered a tsunami warning for one meter wave, and then it lifted it after that. How do

agencies make a call like that in real time?

PARK: Well, when there's a significant earthquake, you raise the alarm because you don't know where it is yet.

But if it turns out that the earthquake is -- is underland, or also if it involves a fault motion that is mostly moving horizontally and not

vertically, then the risk for tsunami decreases quite a bit.

In this case, the motion is mostly horizontal, so it's not actually lifting up or dropping down, which is what would happen when you -- I mean, it

would happen if they -- if it were a thrust earthquake offshore. And it's those vertical motions that are underwater that tend to disturb water and

cause -- and cause tsunamis.

This earthquake was -- was inland. It's close to a -- a -- a bay region near the city of Nagasaki. And so it had the potential for -- for causing

some ocean waves and tsunami motion.

But -- but the fact that it was mostly a horizontal fault motion made the - - made the risk quite a bit lower.

GOLODRYGA: Jeffrey Park, thank you so much for your expertise. We really appreciate it.

In Europe, an intense fourth heat wave is expected to send temperatures soaring across Spain and France. Extreme heat and no rain in the forecast

are fueling dry conditions that have sparked massive wildfires.

And France military engineers are joining with firefighters to battle the intense flames, forcing hundreds of thousands of people from their homes

and burning hundreds of thousands of acres.

In Spain, officials say more than 63,000 people have been evacuated from their homes near Madrid.

Our Melissa Bell is in -- has the very latest developments from France.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[12:10:05]

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Closer and closer to Bordeaux, the Girone fire has spread, as daunting by its size

now, as it is by its ferocity.

Here on the fire's southeastern front, the fight continued on Monday to try to rain it in. Dash water bombers sweeping in from the sky to try and douse

the flames that the fire trucks couldn't reach.

Nearby at the local summer hotspot that is the (INAUDIBLE), pleasure boats have given way to Black Hawk helicopters brought in from the Czech

Republic. Just some of the resources provided by European allies.

COMMANDER MATHIEU JOMAIN, GIRONDE FIREFIGHTERS (through translator): Given the scale, the response can only now be European and even international in

the face of climate change and its consequences, amongst them major forest fires like these.

BELL: This is the Cap Ferret Peninsula. Its population grows in the summer tenfold, which means that when it was evacuated on Friday, 40,000 people

had to flee along the single road that leads back to the mainland, leaving behind this eerily quiet holiday paradise and a huge economic shortfall.

BELL (voice-over): The Peninsula's camping grounds now reminders of how quickly the fire brought a sudden end to so many summer holidays.

Melissa Bell, CNN, the Cap Ferret.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: Well, a day of diplomacy at the White House ahead of a funeral for a high-profile Republican lawmaker.

Donald Trump held back to back meetings at the White House earlier today with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu. Both foreign leaders are in Washington for the funeral of Senator Lindsey Graham later today.

When Trump met with Netanyahu back in February, they laid the groundwork for their joint military campaign against Iran. And as the war drags on,

their relationship is coming under strain.

Israeli source says, Netanyahu planned to share intelligence about Tehran's purported efforts to rebuild its nuclear program.

Listen to what President Trump had to say about that earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't need Bibi to tell me that. Bibi is telling me that because he wants me to stay involved. I mean,

I don't necessarily -- we have the finest because of the Space Force. We have the greatest cameras in the world focused on. We know exactly what's

going on.

But no, I heard Bibi announced that. I said, why don't you just tell them to me? What do you have to announce it to the world? I know exactly what's

going on at Pickaxe. It's not a big problem. We took out their nuclear sites. And we'll have to take out Pickaxe if we don't make a deal. We don't

make a deal, we'll take it out very easily.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak joins us from Washington.

So, he appears to be contradicting himself saying Pickaxe is not a problem, but then he says we can take it out if these negotiations don't work out.

And he actually referenced Pickaxe, I believe, last week with reporters as well.

So, what do we make of this Kevin? And how much of it is based on perhaps - - perhaps because we've been here before, some tensions and frustrations with Prime Minister Netanyahu?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I think that probably is playing a big part in it. Even when -- when the president was referencing

last week, he seems to acknowledge that this information was coming from the Israelis and that he hadn't verified it.

And in that interview with Fox News today, the president actually voiced some frustration that Netanyahu had allowed that information to come out in

public instead of conveying it to the president privately.

You know, these are two men who have had a somewhat erratic relationship. It swings back and forth wildly.

And sometimes what you hear in public, it's not always what's happening in private. You know, Netanyahu does have a way of coming into these meetings

and convincing the president to do certain things or bringing the president back sort of onside in a way that might not be apparent in what the

president is talking about publicly, but certainly, the president I think very wary of whatever it is than Netanyahu will be telling him behind

closed doors today, because this meeting, for now, does appear to be happening behind closed doors.

We got an image from the Israeli press office of the two men sitting in the Oval Office, but it doesn't appear as if they'll bring reporters in for the

photo op that you ordinarily have at the top of these discussions, which I think is probably telling in some ways, one, President Trump recognizing

that this may get contentious that they do have some differences in how they believe the Iran war is going, but also I think President Trump

realizing that that is a very valuable commodity at this point for Netanyahu.

Netanyahu very much wanting to get President Trump's endorsement ahead of this election that he is facing in October. Polls show him suffering

somewhat. And so there is, I think, some leverage that President Trump recognizes he has in this meeting.

You know, the last time Netanyahu was at the White House was a couple weeks before the Iran war began. That meeting didn't actually take place in the

Oval Office. It was in the Situation Room.

[12:15:02]

And what Netanyahu told President Trump was that the Iranian regime would fall very quickly, that the ballistic missile program could be eliminated

in a matter of weeks. And that the Iranians would be so weakened that they wouldn't be able to close at the Strait of Hormuz. Obviously, none of that

came true. It's caused a degree of resentment on the part, certainly, of President Trump, but also among many of President Trump's advisers.

And so, as Netanyahu was trying to get this meeting on the books, they struggled somewhat. You know, he tried to get a meeting last week. It never

materialized. There had been some frustrations on the part of White House officials that, in their view, Netanyahu was trying to will this meeting

into existence by claiming it was going to happen when it wasn't going to happen.

Now, because of Lindsey Graham's funeral, he was able to get an appointment on the president's calendar.

But by all accounts, including by the president's own account in those public remarks earlier today, it could be a fairly contentious discussion,

even though both of these men do have an affinity for each other, a degree of mutual respect, but clearly divergent positions on the Iran war at what

is quite a critical moment.

GOLODRYGA: All right. Kevin Liptak, thank you.

Still to come on "One World," more on Trump and Netanyahu, as they're treading a fine line with this Iran war dragging on.

Later this hour, I'll speak with former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

Plus, yet another safety problem reported on Boeing jets, this time involving the seats.

And later, angry and regretful, the world's richest man is now a lot less wealthy. We'll explain, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: Some large retailers and restaurants are pulling produce from Central Mexico as U.S. cyclosporiasis cases continue to climb.

The Food and Drug Administration has linked the outbreak to iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell. Sourced from privately held Taylor farms in Central

Mexico. However, health officials are searching for other products that may be making people sick.

Well, Boeing has a problem with its seats. That's the word from U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. It says the seats on hundreds of 737 MAX

jets were not installed correctly and could injure passengers during an emergency landing. The FAA ordered 453 jets to be fixed in the U.S. No word

which airlines are affected or how many jets need to be fixed internationally.

CNN's aviation correspondent Pete Muntean is following the story and takes a look at what happens next.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[12:20:03]

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: This is just the latest issue involving Boeing 737 MAX jets. Remember, there were major manufacturing

quality control concerns after critical bolts were not installed on a new 737 MAX at the Boeing factory leading to that dramatic door plug blowout on

an Alaska Airlines flight back in January 2024 and a massive crackdown by the Federal Aviation Administration.

What's interesting here is that FAA says this new warning was prompted by a report it received, essentially by a whistleblower. Here's the issue.

The FAA says passenger seats may not be properly secured on as many as 453 Boeing 737 MAX 8s and Max 9s in the United States, so now the FAA is

proposing mandatory inspections by airlines of the roughly 69 seat rows on each of those airplanes.

The FAA says that seat assemblies may not be fully locked into the tracks on the cabin floor. It's not necessarily a problem during normal

operations, but the FAA says the issue can become dangerous during severe turbulence or an emergency landing when there are violent acceleration

forces.

The FAA warning puts it bluntly saying seats could come loose and hurt those sitting in them, injure passengers nearby and even block the aisle

during an evacuation when seconds count.

Boeing has not directly commented on this, but it did alert airlines to this potential problem back in December.

The FAA proposal would simply make these inspections mandatory. United, American, Alaska, Southwest and Allegiant all operate Boeing 737 MAX

airplanes.

The FAA is not grounding these airplanes and this inspection is relatively straightforward. It doesn't require new parts. So, it should not result in

significant downtime for airlines or major flight disruptions for passengers which is key during this peak of summer travel.

This is a very different issue from the door plug blowout, but it again raises questions about whether basic assembly problems are being caught

before these airplanes inner service.

Pete Muntean, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: Well, Elon Musk is no longer a trillion dollar man. The founder and CEO of SpaceX has seen his net worth shrink by roughly $600 billion.

That's because SpaceX shares have sunk from their post-IPO peak, ending Musk's short time as the world's only trillionaire.

Don't worry though, he's still the world's richest person and is now admitting to regrets handling the Department of Government Efficiency,

better known as DOGE, during an interview with "The Economist's" editor-in- chief.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELON MUSK, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SPACEX: I think I got a little too involved in politics, got carried away, frankly.

So, the -- you know, they go with this or DOGE stuff was -- was to try to do something about the -- the deficit which is massive.

Take a close look at spending and make sure that money is being spent in sensible ways and that it is not wasted or spent on -- on fraudulent

activities.

And I got a lot of flak from this -- for this, obviously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Well, since that interview, Musk has lashed out, calling the interviewer a, quote, traitor to the West.

Social media influencers, Andrew and Tristan Tate, will remain in a Florida jail while they fight extradition to the United Kingdom. They're facing

multiple rape, assault, and sex trafficking charges.

CNN's Carolina Peguero reports from Miami.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROLINA PEGUERO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While the Tate brothers remain in federal custody here in Miami, their legal team says that they're going to

continue to challenge the extradition request from the U.K. and looking for an immediate release or a bail for the brothers.

Now, they were not present in today's hearing.

Last week, there was unsealed court documents revealing alarming details from prosecutors about the latest sex crimes charges and allegations

against them including rape and sex trafficking by four additional alleged victims.

The brothers, however, have denied all allegations against them. And their attorneys have vowed on requesting more information and documents from the

U.K. and the U.S. authorities that prove these allegations.

The Tate brothers together face 59 charges, while the treaty and the agreement of the potential extradition request remains in effect until

September 16th, the judge has scheduled the next hearing for August 13th and the brothers will remain in federal prison.

Carolina Peguero, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:25:35]

GOLODRYGA: All right. Welcome back to "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga.

We're turning now to President Trump's sit-down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House today.

The two are meeting amid recent signs of strain in their relationship. While a senior administration official says, Israel has no greater friend

than Donald Trump, there appear to be growing cracks over the future strategy in Iran.

All of this comes as Netanyahu is looking to firm up Trump's support as he seeks re-election in Israel's October election.

Time now for The Exchange. Joining me is former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who is running to replace Benjamin Netanyahu as Prime

Minister again in the upcoming elections. Mr. Prime Minister, thank you so much. Welcome back to the program.

So, the White House has just said that the meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu was positive. He reportedly went into this meeting to present

President Trump with two options. One of them was to go back into full kinetic war, striking the energy sites and uranium, particularly Pickaxe

Mountain.

Trump said just this morning, however, he appeared to be quite frustrated in an interview with Fox News that he didn't need to get his intelligence

from Prime Minister Netanyahu, that he has his own. The other option would be to keep the blockade.

If you were, prime minister right now, which option would you be trying to present and persuade President Trump to take?

NAFTALI BENNETT, FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Well, what I would look at is the objective and then build back -- backwards.

The objective is to neutralize and dismantle Iran's nuclear program. And that's what President Trump said time and again. And that's what the -- the

prime minister says, time and again.

And I think there's no daylight between the United States and Israel regarding that. And I think everyone now understands much more how bad it

would be if we allowed Iran to acquire nuclear weapons on top of what they're doing in the Straits of Hormuz.

So, you'd have this thug. We all know it's a thug, but it would be a nuclear thug. And we have to prevent that from happening. And then based on

that objective, you need to take your course of action.

GOLODRYGA: There are reports that Iran has been perhaps transporting centrifuges to Pickaxe Mountain. But President Trump says, he has his own

intelligence.

Are you privy at all to the intelligence that Prime Minister Netanyahu reportedly presented to Trump today?

[12:30:06]

BENNETT: Well, no. I'm a former prime minister, hopefully a future one. But currently, I don't -- I'm not privy to all the intelligence.

What I can say is that Iran is extremely adept at playing games, cat and mouse games, hiding and -- and, you know, moving around centrifuges in

uranium, because they want -- they want to get a nuclear weapon.

I think the -- the most basic thing to understand is if you just want nuclear electricity power, right, electric power based on the nuclear

power, you don't need any enrichment, right? There's many countries in the world that have nuclear power for civilian uses -- uses and they don't

enrich uranium.

So, by definition, this whole game proves that, in fact, Iran wants to acquire and still is striving to acquire nuclear weapon, which means that

we have to work and double down to prevent that from happening.

GOLODRYGA: The president says at this point, he seems rather optimistic that the MOU can come back to fruition and that negotiations could be

successful. You have long said that you don't trust any leader, even a close ally like the United States, to make decisions that could impact

Israel without Israel at the table.

What would your reaction be? Would you support President Trump if he decided to return to the MOU for now?

BENNETT: Well, it depends on the content. Look, we are not looking for war. By far, the best outcome would be a peaceful outcome, which dismantles the

nuclear program and the ballistic missile program. That would be the best thing.

If Iran would simply decide something that should be so obvious, Iran wants to build its own future for its people, et cetera, et cetera, that would be

wonderful. And that would mean they are stopping their pursuit of nuclear weapons and taking over the Middle East.

Problem is that they're not there yet. So, any agreement that would achieve those objectives, I would vehemently support, but we have to see the

details.

GOLODRYGA: CNN is reporting that Iran is claiming that weapons production lines are, quote, more active than ever right now.

I want to ask you about a Channel 12 report that CNN has not been able to confirm, but it reports that the White House wanted a deliverable from

Prime Minister Netanyahu before granting him this meeting. So Netanyahu then agreed to allow international forces into Gaza, dropping the demand

that Hamas disarm first.

The prime minister's office called this a gesture to President Trump. Is that a gesture that a Prime Minister Bennett would have made?

BENNETT: Well, I think it's very dangerous to move forward without dismantling Hamas, which was a provision in the agreement. Here's why.

You're -- you're trying to build a building, right? But if you're building it on -- on shaky sand, on poisonous sand, or -- you can't do that because

as long as Gaza is controlled by Hamas, which is one of the deadliest and most dangerous terror organizations on Earth, you're not going to be able

to build anything.

You have to move the bullies. You have to remove the violence, and then you can build a future. And that's why doing it in a serial fashion makes more

sense.

That said, when President Trump asks for something, given his immense support to the state of Israel, we have to listen.

GOLODRYGA: Well, when it comes to some asks that you are adamantly opposed to, including Prime Minister Netanyahu, that -- that is the F-35 fighter

jets that President Trump seems very keen on delivering to President Erdogan of Turkey.

President Trump just yesterday saying, quote, nobody tells me what we should be selling. He's continued to praise Erdogan and their relationship,

despite relentless campaigning by Prime Minister Netanyahu, to stop him from this sale.

I know this is something you're against, as well as the prime minister's influence in Washington, just given this as one example spent. And -- and

what do you think you could do that's any different?

BENNETT: Well, here's what's going on. As the -- the Shiite radical terror present of Iran, Iraq, Hezbollah, et cetera, is in some degree of decline,

the Sunnite radical Islamic effort is growing.

And I'm talking about Qatar and Turkey. Specifically, I have to say that Qatar, I yesterday announced that if I become prime minister, I will

declare Qatar an enemy, because Qatar is our terrorists in suits.

[12:35:04]

That's the -- the only difference between Iran and Qatar is that Qatar wears suits and they pretend to be all Western and all advanced and all,

you know, progressive. But these guys have been funding terror across the world. They funded job.

in all advanced and all progressive. But these guys have been funding terror across the world. They funded Jabhat al-Nusra. They funded Hamas.

They funded, for heaven's sake, Iran's IRGC, which has killed Israelis, Americans, and people all across the region.

And that's why, when we're talking about Turkey and Qatar, an Israeli prime minister has to stand strong and say, we cannot allow our enemies to be

armed because then we won't be able to defend ourselves against this very advanced weaponry.

GOLODRYGA: So, let me ask you a two-fold question, really, as it relates to Qatar. You went as far as to describe Qatar a violent, anti-Semitic cancer.

Obviously, the Qataris responded with a great deal of pushback to that.

You say intelligence shows they funded the IRGC. You declared them an enemy of the state. There had been a lot of condemnation of Prime Minister

Netanyahu for allowing Qatari money to -- to flow into Gaza.

You said that -- that you stopped those suitcases of cash flowing in, but then you approved a U.N. mechanism, when you were prime minister, to send

millions of dollars a month into Gaza.

So, why are you raising this right now, right before a critical election in Israel when you could have done the same, you could have prevented

something a long time ago?

And I guess the bigger question is, what do you say to the United States where you had not just won but two administrations, the President Biden

administration and Trump's, who have nothing but a great deal of admiration and support, at least publicly, for the Qataris?

BENNETT: Well, I'd say two things. First of all, your description is semi- correct. I stopped the cash flowing to Hamas and ensured that it would be turned into prepaid cards of $100 a piece that go to families in Gaza.

Secondly, a huge event happened in the middle, and it's called October 7th. On October 7th, we realized that you can't hide -- hide or --or ignore this

huge terror apparatus, which it sends its tentacles into American universities, into American media, into influencers.

The Qataris are buying their way through the entire West and the Middle East, and they are lethal. These people have a very radical islamistic (ph)

agenda.

Now, the fact is, I -- I -- I'm cognizant of the fact that American administrations see it differently. That's why I'm speaking out. That's why

I'm making the case and willing to bring all the evidence to the public to show that Qatar is an empire of terror, but hiding behind suits and

pretending to be, you know, progressive, et cetera, you know, with the World Cup and all of that stuff. It's nonsense. These guys have killed

many, many people.

GOLODRYGA: You are speaking out publicly now with your views on a number of issues that had been reported that there were back-channel communications

opened between you and the Trump administration just within the last few weeks.

Have you been talking to the Trump administration?

BENNETT: Well, I don't comment regarding any sort of quiet talks. I will say that, obviously, I -- I talk to everyone in the region, in America, and

do anything in my power to -- to help strengthen Israel's security and America's posture in the Middle East, which is a huge interest, national

security interest, for Israel and that's why, obviously, I'll talk to anyone relevant.

GOLODRYGA: Let me ask you about the West Bank. You have been quite critical of the war in Gaza, the fact that it has gone on for three years. And

despite the fact that Prime Minister Netanyahu had been claiming that he would achieve full victory, that -- that is still not in -- the case.

Hamas has not disarmed. There's a humanitarian crisis there. And you have blamed that, in part, in addition to what you described as anti-Semitism on

the significant turn on Israel that we have seen, not just in the United States, but obviously around the world.

But let me ask you about the West Bank in particular, because Prime Minister Netanyahu calls the settler rioters a metastasizing cancer, but

publicly, he does nothing about it. Even your partner in the Abraham Accords, the UAE, says that Israel's silence looks like approval.

If you were prime minister, would you be arresting these settlers?

[12:40:01]

BENNETT: I'll be very clear. In Judea and Samaria, there's 550,000 Israelis. The vast majority of them are decent law-abiding people. But

there are small groups, but not in significant groups that apply terror. And we have to fight any sort of illegal activities by anyone including if

they're Israelis in Judea and Samaria.

So, I have zero tolerance for any criminal activity, for any sort of violence, period, full stop.

GOLODRYGA: Final question to you, and that relates to the elections at home there. Gadi Eisenkot, who is Israel's former top general. He lost his son.

His nephews in the war in Gaza. He's pulling ahead of you as Netanyahu's chief challenger right now.

You united with the Yair Lapid. He's the centrist opposition leader and a former prime minister. You're polling about where you were before you

united with him. So, that didn't seem to be effective for you.

One poll tested a merger, however, with Eisenkot that if led by him would get 37 seats led by you, 33. You have six weeks to make a decision right

now. Your polling is not very strong on its own.

Would you unite with Gadi Eisenkot? Would you let him be on top of a coalition government?

BENNETT: First of all, I have to praise you for your intricate knowledge of Israeli politics. I'm impressed.

Regarding your question, I'm going to do everything, everything in my ability for the Zionist Democratic bloc in Israel to defeat this

government. I think this government has to go home.

My position is secondary in that sense. So, I will do anything necessary. Gadi and I will work things out. We've got six weeks. We'll talk. We're

talking now and we'll see how we move forward to win and fix Israel so we can bring a renaissance for Israel, a renaissance in the region, and a

renaissance in the relationship between the United States of America, our best friend and Israel.

GOLODRYGA: So yes, you'd serve under a prime minister, Eisenkot, if that meant defeating Prime Minister Netanyahu?

BENNETT: Well, as I said, I'm working with Gadi through the things. I'm sure we're going to figure it out together.

GOLODRYGA: All right. Naftali Bennett, thank you so much for the time.

BENNETT: You take care.

GOLODRYGA: And that does it -- that does it for this hour of "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga. Thanks so much for watching. "Africa Insiders" is

next.

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