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UNICEF Coordinating With Partners To Help Front-Line Workers; Fauci: Vaccine Could Offer U.S. Level Of Herd Immunity; Russia Ramps Up Testing To Showcase Medical Advances; Massive Explosion Interrupts Bridal Photo Shoot; Protesters Throw Water At Lebanese Justice Minister; Macron Promises Aid, Proposes New Political Pact; Ammonium Nitrate Stored In Warehouse Linked To Beirut Explosion. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired August 06, 2020 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:23]

HALA GORANI, CNN HOST: Good evening, everybody. I'm Hala Gorani in London. In Beirut, scenes of hope and frustration in a city in tatters. Tuesday's explosion first brought shock, and now outrage, anger, towards systemic dysfunction is nothing new to Lebanon.

But moments like this, protesters throwing water at the country's Justice Minister, illustrate their thinning patience. On the other hand, there are moments like this. The French President visiting to show solidarity and promise, help, and change. His reception was instead one of elation. And that contrast is revealing. It says a great deal about where the Lebanese people pin their hopes and their trust. A problem Mr. Macron noted himself in Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): Over and above the explosion, we know the crisis here is a serious one and places historic responsibilities on the leaders. It is a political, moral, economic, and financial crisis.

The first victim of which is the Lebanese people. It requires reactions extremely quickly. So for me, this visit is also an opportunity for frank dialogue, a demanding one with political leaders in Lebanese institutions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Ben Wedeman is in Beirut for us, and Ben, we're two days in now. What is the latest from Beirut? We saw a lot of cleanup. But also a lot of anger.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. We are really sort of -- today, we were out for the second full day in a row going around the areas most affected by this blast that took place a few minutes after 6:00 p.m., Tuesday evening.

And what we're seeing is that after the initial shock, which was really apparent yesterday, but that shock is starting to wear off, and it's being replaced by hard questions and anger.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WEDEMAN (voice over): George Faraoun has come with a friendly to see what they can salvage from the remains of his parents' apartment, which looked directly onto Beirut's port.

Tuesday's blast turned it into a moon scape, a panorama of utter destruction. Dried blood marks the spot where his mother was resting in bed when the explosion sent a wall slamming on top of her. She's still in the hospital. This was his parents' retirement home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE FARAOUN, BEIRUT RESIDENT: This is their life. Everything they did here, look what happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN (voice over): Given the damage, they probably will never be able to move back. Many neighbors were badly injured, others killed.

WEDEMAN (on camera): In addition to the dead and the wounded, many, many people have lost their homes. According to the Governor of Beirut, more than 300,000 people in the city have been made homeless.

WEDEMAN (voice over): People are packing up and moving out. While others try to salvage what they can, the area near the port is now a hive of activity as an army of volunteers like Maggy Demerjian has launched into a massive cleanup effort, perhaps to show themselves that despite this country's mountain of woes, good will prevail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAGGY DEMERJIAN, VOLUNTEER: Lebanese people doesn't deserve this. Yes. We are good people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN (voice over): They've come from all over the city, handing out food and water, pitching in wherever, however they can.

Officials believe the blast emanated from a warehouse filled with 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate, sitting there under lax security for six years.

The government has promised a quick, transparent investigation, yet going back decades, Lebanon has witnessed a series of high-profile assassinations and rarely, if ever, has the truth emerged.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAD ACHKAR, BEIRUT RESIDENT: This accident here, this crisis, for 20 years, they are going to talk about an investigation. It's never going to end. No conclusion, no results.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN (voice over): And no confidence among many here that the truth will ever be known.

(END VIDEOTAPE) [15:05:01]

WEDEMAN: And perhaps because of the yawning gap of mistrust between the people and the politicians, it does appear that the government is starting to move to try to hold those immediately accountable, perhaps, for this disaster.

We know that the Central Bank has been ordered to freeze the accounts of many senior officials who are responsible for that port. That after some of them were placed under house arrest.

But many of the people I have spoken to over the last two days fear that what's going to happen is that the small fish will pay the price, the big fish will get away -- Hala.

GORANI: And speaking of the port, I mean, does the central government have complete control of that port? Or do groups like Hezbollah call the shots in many cases. I mean, who is really in charge?

WEDEMAN: That's a question many are asking. It is known that Hezbollah has a presence in the port, perhaps through individuals who are in some way affiliated with the group, and there have long been suspicions and accusations internally as well as externally that they somehow control the port.

But it's important to keep in mind that the basic essence of government in Lebanon, where power and resources that the government has at its disposal are divided between various factions. So one ministry will be controlled by one party or somebody affiliated with that party, and I think it's fair to say the port is no exception -- Hala.

GORANI: All right, Ben Wedeman, thanks very much, live in Beirut.

France has given an extensive aid package to Lebanon involving 15 tons of equipment, two military planes, 55 personnel, and a mobile clinic. Earlier today, the French President said France is happy to offer support, financial support, but that Lebanon must take action in order to get it in weeding out corruption. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MACRON (through translator): The priority is to assist and support the population with no conditions. For months and years now, however, France has been demanding indispensable reforms in certain sectors: energy, government procurement, and the fight against corruption. If these reforms are not carried out, Lebanon will continue to sink.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, Cyril Vanier is in Paris, and the interesting thing that Macron said at the French Ambassador's residence in Beirut was also, we are not going to write you a blank check anymore. We are going to send money, but through NGOs, we are not paying this directly into the government because the government has lost the trust of its people.

CYRIL VANIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Hala. And the French President Emmanuel Macron siding with the Lebanese people that he is showing the same level of mistrust that protesters -- Lebanese protesters, have shown with their own government, and that's why he doesn't want the money or the resources to be channeled through the government or the country's official institutions. He wants it to go directly to the people who need it on the ground or to NGOs.

The French President and France are among the countries within the international community that have been pushing Lebanon to reform not just for a few months, but for several years now. France in fact had spearheaded that effort starting in 2018, two years ago.

Reforms in Lebanon that are supposed to unlock international financial assistance and put the country back on the road to recovery, but those reforms just haven't been forthcoming.

Political leaders in Lebanon have either been unable or many say unwilling to reform the country. The accusation is that the status quo is to their benefit, and it would appear that the French President has in a way used the outrage and the sadness and the anger caused by the explosion in Beirut as some form of political cover to turn up the pressure on the Lebanese leadership and try to kick start those reforms that haven't happened in the last few years.

GORANI: All right, Cyril Vanier in Paris. Thank you very much. Nic Robertson joins me now for more on the investigation. The question of course, you know, if indeed it was ammonium nitrate that exploded this huge blast, Nic, what ignited the ammonium nitrate in the first place?

What more can you tell us about what experts and investigators are saying?

[15:10:07]

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, it seems to be beyond most experts' doubt at the moment that this was ammonium nitrate that exploded. What Intelligence officials -- Lebanese Intelligence officials are telling me at least is that they are still looking at the theory that something triggered this explosion.

They think it might have been a bomb. They perceive what happened here as an attack, and they are looking through all the video footage they can to see what they can learn about it. That's sort of one area of the investigation, if you will.

Another area does appear to be, you know, what the Prime Minister referred to over 24 hours ago saying that whoever was responsible was going to be held to account. We've been talking to different entities in Lebanon about the exchange essentially of what are bureaucratic letters. The ship's owner, in July 2014, wrote to not only the Ministry of

Transport, but also to the port authorities in Beirut saying we are very concerned about all of the material aboard the ship. We think it is dangerous. It is a dangerous situation.

The ship's owner got a letter back from that same Ministry saying that they had contacted the Department of Justice and the naval authorities. All of this sounds complicated, doesn't it? It kind of -- this is a bureaucratic situation there.

Then we have the scenario added on top of that where we understand that the authorities in charge of the ports then -- at the Customs level at least are then contacting the Ministry of Justice to get them to help with this dangerous situation.

Six letters sent over a number of years. Again, nothing done. We now know that the Ministry of Justice, or people there, were writing back to the Customs officials saying don't write to us. It's not our problem. Write to the Ministry of Transport. But the Ministry of Transport already knew about the situation, because the ship's owners had alerted them.

So when the government is looking for where did all this go wrong and how that come all of this explosive material was on the harbor side for six years, part of it is the paper trail and we have been able to look at part of it. However, we haven't had answers to our inquiries, at least, from the Ministry of Transport, from the Ministry of Justice or from the Customs authorities themselves.

So we are only piecing this together, but again, as far as the explosion is concerned, the government does seem to be following the lead that it was -- they think possibly -- a bomb triggered the big explosion. That's the main theory that they are following that I understand so far.

GORANI: All right. Well, people want answers. They want answers, and they want them as quickly as possible. They are angry and frustrated. Thanks very much, Nic Robertson.

When we come back, aid organizations are rushing to provide critical supplies. We will talk to a UNICEF representative and tell you what you can do to help as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:15:48]

GORANI: Welcome back. I want to keep talking and covering the aftermath of this massive blast in Beirut. Michel Moawad is a Member of the Lebanese Parliament and Founder and President of the Independence Movement. He joins me now from Beirut via Skype.

So you saw the saw the anger of ordinary Lebanese people directed at their politicians today and in the last few months during demonstrations. They are demanding accountability. They are demanding transparency. Do you think this moment will be any different? Do you think they will get what they are asking for?

MICHEL MOAWAD, MEMBER OF THE LEBANESE PARLIAMENT: I hope so. I totally understand people to be more than furious, more than angry because what is happening in Lebanon is a complete disaster. It's a nightmare for all of us, not only for ordinary people. For any Lebanese citizen that dreamt about Lebanon as a beacon of democracy, of openness, of pluralism in the country, what is happening is that we are living in a Lebanon that is hijacked politically, that is hijacked by corruption, that is hijacked by incompetence, and that is totally, totally unacceptable.

GORANI: Okay. So how do you change things? Because the way -- this is a systemic problem, the way the power structure is set up and, you know, you would have to start from scratch. How do you do that?

MOAWAD: Well, it's time to be clear about what are the solutions. To know what are the solutions, we need to know what are the problems. The first problem is macro politics. We cannot be part of the politics in the region. We cannot be hijacked -- and I am using the term hijacked by Hezbollah into being part of the Iranian -- servicing the Iranian agenda in the region on the one part and turning our back to our friends, to our allies, to our supporters to the Arab world, to the west, to our economic and financial partners.

On the other hand, yes, you are right. The corruption in the country has become systemic. So, yes, we need to change this, and I personally have requested and voted for early elections to start from scratch and having a new Parliament that has a bigger legitimacy and of course, build a new government based on the elections.

GORANI: Yes. And you mentioned Hezbollah. Hezbollah, of course, is almost a state within a state. It has its own militia. It is Iran- backed. I mean, how does a country like Lebanon that's divided into so many spheres of influence with a relatively weak central government, if you compare it for instance to Hezbollah. How does that country become a representative democracy for all of its people regardless of sect?

MOAWAD: Well, as you said, we have a country within a country, and we have a state within a state. And yes, you are right. That is why it is time for Hezbollah to accept that himself even within his constituency, cannot take Lebanon the way it is.

Of course I am talking about Hezbollah concerning the -- getting Lebanon to the Iranian agenda. But when we are talking about corruption that is unfortunately widespread and across the board -- I am not going to say all the political class, but I am going to say most of the political class.

GORANI: And so you outlined the problems. The solution, you think, potentially, could be early elections, and a kind of national will to change things. You heard what Emmanuel Macron said today, where he said essentially we are not going to send any money or aid directly to the government because this system has lost the trust of its people. We are going to go through NGOs. What is your reaction to that?

[15:20:06]

MOAWAD: That I totally support what Emmanuel Macron has said. Unfortunately, money has gone to the government more than once. There have been promises of reforms more than once. And unfortunately, that money went to finance corruption and to only delay the problematic that we have arrived to.

Today it is very clear that we, as a Lebanese people -- I personally saying whom I am representing, I am saying no, with no reforms, we do not want money going to the government, clearly. Because that money is going to go into the pockets of some politicians and that is not acceptable anymore.

We want reforms. We want accountability. We want transparency.

GORANI: But in the immediate -- I mean, in the near future, you have a huge problem ahead for your country because the port is essentially out of commission. You know, the country might have -- what -- four weeks, five weeks of wheat left, medical supplies, all sorts of things come through that port. What will you do?

MOAWAD: Well, one of the problems concerning the port, we have the Tripoli Port that could be able on the short-term to solve or to manage the problem. Second, yes, I totally agree that NGOs in Lebanon can help. You know, apart from being an MP, I am the Executive Director of the Rene Moawad Foundation, an RMF that is one of the main partners of the international institutions in Lebanon.

We are working underground. I think that very often NGOs are being much more efficient than central government in doing that. We can work through municipalities also, because local governments are -- maybe in Beirut, unfortunately, the municipality -- I mean, the question of the municipality of Beirut is very complicated by law because it is part of the central government between the Mohafaza and the municipality.

But NGOs are there on the ground. People are willing, despite their disgust, despite their anger, you can see on the other hard an incredible sense the solidarity between the Lebanese. People are helping each other. A lot of volunteers are working on the ground, and I think those are the people we need to push to help people out.

And yes, you are right, we are -- what is happening is a real tragedy. We are having until tonight around 150 dead. We are still counting the dead because, you know, we have injured people in very severe cases. We have still people missing. We have more than 300,000 people that to not have any more homes. We are talking about seven to eight percent of the total population.

And that is without the explosion, we very well know that before this, more than 50 percent of the Lebanese were already living under the line of poverty and not having access to their money in the banks.

GORANI: Michel Moawad, Lebanese Member of Parliament. Thank you very much for joining us there, outlining obviously the issues and the blast that is one more crisis that the country is having to respond to and manage. Now, why did this explosion take place? This very, very volatile

chemical compound -- how did this dangerous fertilizer -- how did it cause such a colossal disaster?

Sam Kiley has been looking at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In a land so often cursed by violence, a catastrophe. More likely the product of human incompetence than malicious design.

At the core of the Beirut explosion, government officials fear is some 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, a common ingredient for fertilizer but mixed with fuel or sugar, it can be a precursor for homemade bombs. They have been used by the IRA and terrorists worldwide. Anti- government extremists used to tons and killed 168 in Oklahoma.

Chris Hunter is a decorated bomb disposal expert who served with British Special Forces and still works in Iraq and Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS HUNTER, FORMER EXPLOSIVE EXPERT, BRITISH ARMY: What you can see is a series of sparks and flashes, you know, sort of dance towards the base of the actual flames and belts and the smoke, and that's consistent with something like fireworks cooking off.

If it's confined in something like shipping containers, then what you can get is effectively a giant pipe bomb.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KILEY (voice over): But that he says was just the detonator for the vast ammonium nitrate explosion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTER: Moments later, of course, we see the explosion itself, and that's preceded by that sort of very brilliant red-colored smoke coming up, as well. And that's consistent with chlorates and nitrates of the type used in fertilizer --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KILEY (voice over): Lebanon's Prime Minister has vowed investigations and punishment for whoever allowed this to happen. Hunter says that the white smoke further suggests it was an accident. A fuel mix used in terror attacks would be black, but the shockwave still supersonic.

So, in his expert opinion, the blast that flattened so much of Beirut was not an act of malice. But that doesn't explain how the fireworks store or ammunition dump caught fire. Much less, why.

Sam Kiley, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[15:55:52]

GORANI: A former Saudi Intelligence official is claiming that the country's crown prince, Mohammad Bin Salman tried to order his assassination.

Dr. Saad Al Jabry says a team was dispatched from Saudi Arabia all the way to Canada, according to him, on the orders of MBS, the Crown Prince, in an attempt to kill him.

They were supposedly refused entry into the country. He claims the team included the same people who murdered journalist, Jamal Khashoggi a few days prior.

With more on this story just in, CNN's Alex Marquardt is in Washington and has some new reporting on this. Alex, what can you tell us?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Hala, Saad Al Jabry, who has been in exile since 2017 is alleging that the people who orchestrated the attack against him are the very same who orchestrated the attack against Jamal Khashoggi, most notably at the behest of the Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman.

As you so accurately summarized there, what he is saying in a complaint that has been filed today in the D.C. District Court, just a few days after Jamal Khashoggi was killed in Istanbul, a team from the same unit that he calls the Tiger Squad was sent from Saudi Arabia to Ontario International Airport, at which point, they were detected. They came under suspicion from the Canadian officials and turned away.

Now, Al Jabry says that he has this information about what happened at the airport from western Intelligence officials, as well as private investigators. He has says that members of the so-called Tiger Squad showed up and among them were forensics experts and carrying with them what he called forensics tools.

Now, a couple of years before, really, the year before, Al Jabry had fled. He had fallen out favor with Mohammad bin Salman because he was the number two to MBS's chief rival, Muhammed bin Nayef, the former Crown Prince who had been deposed.

And so, seeing the writing on the wall essentially, Al Jabry fled first to Turkey and then on to Canada and the United States. Now, immediately he says he started getting threatening text messages via WhatsApp from MBS.

And MBS had leverage on him because as Al Jabry left, he left two of his children behind in Saudi Arabia. They are now 20 and 22 years old. His son and his daughter, Omar and Sara. At first, he says, they were banned from leaving the Kingdom. And then earlier this year, in March, he says, they were abducted by Saudi officials, they disappeared.

The disappearance of these two children has risen to the level of U.S. senators most notably among them, the acting Chairman of the Intelligence Committee Marco Rubio who just last month wrote to President Trump asking him to raise the issue of these two children with Saudi officials.

But this is a familiar story, Hala, of someone who knows the secrets of the Kingdom, who has a very close relationship with the United States, who has fallen out of favor with MBS.

And according to Dr. Saad Al Jabry has since been targeted by this assassination squad, he says failed to track him down and kill him. But he insists that MBS is still after him -- Hala.

GORANI: All right, thanks very much for that reporting, Alex Marquardt live in Washington.

Still to come, the international community is reaching out to help Lebanon in its hour of need. We will speak to a UNICEF representative when we return. Stay with us.

[15:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Well, as Lebanon struggles to recover from the most devastating blast ever to hit Beirut, it also has to worry about a possible rise in coronavirus cases. The country's health minister says infections may increase over the next 10 days. He says in the rush to treat the wounded after the explosion, some doctors and patients had contact with no protective gear. And also, you saw a lot of people understandably running around in shock and running away from the site of the explosion, and obviously, you know, without wearing masks, they had other things to worry about. Really, it was a question of life and death for many of them.

The international community is reaching out to help Lebanon providing relief supplies and medical specialists. UNICEF is coordinating with its partners on the ground, and trying to help frontline workers. Violet Speek-Warnery is the UNICEF deputy representative for Lebanon. And she joins me in Beirut. So, talk to us, Violet, about some of the challenges that you've faced that UNICEF has faced and its work in the aftermath of this explosion. What's been the biggest challenge?

VIOLET SPEEK-WARNERY, DEPUTY REPRESENTATIVE FOR LEBANON, UNICEF (via Skype): Well, the biggest challenge has been to respond very quickly to a very chaotic situation, but also chaotic for UNICEF itself. We have multiple staff that were living in that area. And so, our staff also had to be relocated and had to be brought to hospital and were injured, and have also been displaced. So, with the 300,000s or somewhat people have been displaced and have become homeless, we also have some of our staff.

Luckily, there's a strong solidarity within the team. And so, those who were not affected in the first response, were able to move right away. And in that response, really, what was the first response is to help children to make sure that the children know where their caregivers are going, and also, for their caregivers or parents to know where the children are going because it was quite chaotic. And to help with that tracing of that -- of the families. At the same time, there was -- GORANI: Yes, because of course -- yes?

WARNERY: There was a --

GORANI: I'm sorry to jump in. I was just going to say, for children, there's that added -- there's that added trauma, right, when you're a kid, and you know, you maybe you're separated? But this is coming on top of the COVID pandemic, of the financial crisis, of the refugee crisis. How are kids coping? I mean, it must be -- it must be extremely worrying for so many of them to be in such a constant state of flux for so long.

[15:35:13]

WARNERY: Yes, and I think especially this year has been very, very difficult for children. We first had the protests, which made them stop schools. The shops were closed; the economy was kind of closed. So, they were away from school between four or six weeks, depending a little bit where they were in which area of the country. Then, the economic crisis really hit. So, you know, they saw their parents losing jobs. They themselves -- also their income minimizing; some had to cut back on food. And then, the COVID came with the lockdown.

Again, no more school, no more with your friends, at your home. And some of them are living, of course, in very small homes. So, being stuck in sort of a home environment is for not all children a pleasant place to be. And then on top of this, this has happened. And I think, you know, this -- all of this together is a scenario of already we were seeing children with mental health, you know, really challenged. Now, this on top of it, the insecurity of where your family is, will you be able to go back to your home? What kind of home do I go back to? Yet, the mental health capacity is -- it's a real challenge. And this is one of our biggest issues that we definitely want to tackle with, together with the health needs that are so rampant at the moment. So, just being able to go to a public health service.

GORANI: And what do you -- yes, sure. And what do -- I mean, international organizations obviously are trying to do their best. NGOs, charities on the ground. UNICEF, in particular, what is it that you need at this stage for -- in order to make your response to the best they can be in these dire circumstances?

WARNERY: Well, I think number one is supplies, many supplies. From personal protective equipment to tetanus immunization, to trauma kits, to medicines, vaccines, because all that was near the airport or near the port, where the explosion was. There was a big warehouse there of supplies. So, supplies are of a huge potential importance. At the same time, the rehabilitation. Rehabilitation of hospitals that have been damaged, public health services that have been damaged and giving temporary services to that. At the same time, also looking at schools, many schools have been damaged. So, hopefully, children -- we can get children into school.

But many more than 100 schools, which now recently have been reported, have had some sort of damages. So, schools, water infrastructure. At the moment, we're just -- we're handing out water, but the water infrastructure in some areas have been really, really affected. So, this kind of, sort of basic thing. The continuation of providing children with support, traumatic and mental health.

Also for parents, how do you deal with that as a parent who has lost so much this year? In addition to this, how do you talk to your child in these kind of situations? It's very, very, very difficult for parents, when they themselves don't know where the future is going. When they felt themselves very depleted, how do you then bring in your child in that environment to make that, you know, make them feel that they belong?

And the other issues, of course, the housing. So, we're looking at potentially some sort of a cash assistance program for families of who needs some sort of temporary accommodation. At the moment with families or the neighbor, or, you know, somewhere, but they need to be able to find a home at some point again. And how do you do that in an economic situation where you've seen your savings completely depleted at this moment in time?

GORANI: Yes, there's so many -- there's such a long -- there's such a long list that, I mean, it's easy to feel -- to feel, you know, very depressed about it because it just goes on and on and on, whether it's school, shelter, money, medical supplies, mental health. And really, we wish you the best of luck in UNICEF and other NGOs the best of luck. Violet Speek-Warnery --

WARNERY: Thank you.

GORANI: -- is the deputy rep for Lebanon for UNICEF. And we've had a huge response from viewers who want to help the victims of this tragedy. And if you'd like to help out, we've put together a list of organizations that are trying to respond at cnn.com/impact, you'll find various ways you can help. I noticed that when you go to that list, you'll find for instance, the Red Cross, the U.S. Red Cross, linked to that organization. But then through that, you can go to the Lebanon appeal, so you can, you know, direct your money that way. So, that's one way to do it.

And also, on our social media, my colleagues and I, have shared in our stories on Instagram and the like other organizations. There's the organization of our colleague, Arwa Damon, INARA, and others who are really on the ground, much smaller. But you know that that those funds are used to treat a smaller number of cases but in a very transparent and direct way.

[15:40:11]

Still ahead, more on the global impact of COVID-19. We get the picture from the United States, where the pandemic is still very much raging. But a top expert says things could be very different, even as soon as Election Day. We'll explain after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Here we are. Dr. Anthony Fauci says that for all the challenges COVID-19 is presenting America right now, he has hoped that a vaccine would give the country some level of herd immunity. Mark McClellan is a former FDA Commissioner and joins us from Durham, North Carolina. When do you think there might be a vaccine? I mean, there are very, very optimistic forecasts coming from the President, all the way down to lower level officials that perhaps we'll see a vaccine by the end of this year. That would be extremely fast for a vaccine development. Where do you stand on this?

MARK MCCLELLAN, FORMER COMMISSIONER, FDA (via Webex): Hala, it would be unprecedented in terms of speed of vaccine development, but I think it's very plausible -- very possible to happen, not just for vaccines that are being developed in the U.S. and there are a range of them in development now and actually in advance clinical testing even, but also for vaccines that are being developed in England and tested elsewhere in the world, and in China, as well. What's happened with this pandemic, the health and the economic consequences are so great that what has traditionally been a long sequential process has been compressed with lots of things happening in parallel, like clinical testing alongside manufacturing of vaccines at large scale. So, that's what's making this possible.

GORANI: I guess there is really a sense of urgency here because it has just caused so much economic devastation that many countries around the world are for, you know, pedal to the metal, so to speak on this process. But once a vaccine is found to be effective, how long then before it can be distributed widely? What is the process there?

[15:44:57]

MCCLELLAN: The processes, the clinical trials need to be done. And these trials take a while because you need to give the vaccine to many people, and for a lot of the vaccines, they take two doses, so you have to wait a month after the first dose, for the second to get to expected level of immunity that we hope is going to lead to an effective vaccine. And then, you need to wait long enough to see if the vaccines really do reduce the rate that people get infected and how severe those infections are.

So, that's going to take a few months. And then, regulatory agencies like the FDA are going to have to review the data. They're going to do that as quickly as possible. And that's why we're still four or five months out. But again, there's a lot of vaccine manufacturing going on, even now, that if the vaccines don't work, they're going to get thrown away. If they do work, there won't be any further delay in making them available.

GORANI: So, it's similar to what's happening with Johnson & Johnson, where they're producing tens of millions of doses just in case that particular vaccine ends up working. They have them ready. Is that -- is that how it works?

MCCLELLAN: That's exactly right. So, for that vaccine, also for five other vaccines, different vaccines, that work in different ways, the U.S. government is going in jointly with the manufacturers to produce hundreds of millions of doses. Other nations are doing the same thing. European countries, China, there is a global collaborative effort to support large scale vaccine availability in less developed countries, which I think needs even more support. But that's what we should be doing, because as you said, this is an unprecedented pandemic, and we can't afford to wait if we actually do have a vaccine that works.

GORANI: Right, I think, really, on this one, everybody on this planet wants a vaccine that works to shield us from this terrible virus. Mark McClellan, thank you very much, the former FDA Commissioner, joining us from Durham.

To Russia now, which is ramping up testing for Coronavirus while showcasing some of its latest medical advances. But there are concerns about just how effective Russia's efforts really are. Matthew Chance has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the new front line in Russia's war on COVID-19. We gained exclusive access to the rapid testing being introduced at Russia's airports. Soon, every passenger could be screened like this. Russia says is another example of its scientific edge.

ANDREY KASHUBSKY, EMG DIRECTOR, RUSSIAN DIRECT INVESTMENT FUND: This is the leading edge of everything in the diagnostics. It's called point-of-care system. So, it can be used everywhere whenever people need it here. And you are the witness, it takes one hour.

CHANCE: Chance, Matthew.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chance, Matthew.

CHANCE: Well, those behind this new technology in Moscow say that the test can be used in global airports around the world, including in the United States. A way of resuming flights, they say, while protecting the safety of passengers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Open up.

CHANCE: Of course, what that means is that in the future -- in the future, every journey -- ow --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's all.

CHANCE: -- could start or end like this.

Russia has been casting itself at the forefront of efforts to tackle the global coronavirus pandemic, as well as mass testing. It's poised to approve what it says will be the world's first COVID-19 vaccine, developed at breakneck speed at this Moscow research lab.

Claims of Russia's world beating medical advances ring hollow to critics like Anastasia Vasilyeva, a Russian doctor turned prominent opposition campaigner who now broadcasts her concerns on a popular online show. It seems more like propaganda, she told me, than progress.

ANASTASIA VASILYEVA, DOCTORS' ALLIANCE: They were not -- they just want to say, we are the (INAUDIBLE) and but this vaccine is not safe. Is not effective because they didn't do the necessary investigations with this vaccine. And ...

CHANCE: Why do they need to be the first?

VASILYEVA: Well, I think it's Russia, the big and strong country, in putting the big, great president. He just want to be the best president maybe in the world.

CHANCE: Right. Hi. The moment of reckoning.

There are concerns about the accuracy of Russian testing, too. Officials admit early cases could simply slip through.

Negative.

Relief from Russia could prove premature.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[15:50:01]

GORANI: And that was Matthew Chance reporting. The massive blast that destroyed much of Beirut also ruined this doctor's wedding day video shoot. CNN speaks to the couple as they recount what happened and take us inside their now wrecked wedding sweet. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Some of the stories coming out of Beirut are resonating around the world, like the one of this bride, the day she and her groom were planning for years. It was transformed in seconds. Jomana Karadsheh has their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was a picture- perfect wedding shoot. The glowing bride posing for photos. A short walk from the luxury wedding venue in downtown Beirut. As the smiling Dr Israa Seblani looks down at her bouquet, horror strikes. Her big day blown away in an instant. The couple and the video crew run for cover, destruction all around them.

ISRAA SEBLANI, BEIRUT BLAST SURVIVOR: At that moment, one thing I thought about, now I'm losing my life. I'm losing my husband. I'm going to be buried under a building. Now I'm going to die. I'm wait -- I'm -- now, I'm waiting the moment how I'm going to die. Is it going to be fast? Am I going to feel it? Am I going to be near him?

KARADSHEH: 29-year-old Seblani, a U.S. resident, came back to her native Lebanon to get married. The original plan was to have the wedding party in the United States. But husband, Ahmad Sbeih, says he's been waiting for his U.S. visa for three years. With immigration laws getting stricter by the day under the Trump administration, the couple says they didn't want to be a part any longer, and finally settled on celebrating their marriage in Beirut with friends and family in the city where their love first blossomed.

SEBLANI: At that moment, the beautiful place I was in and where the people were dining in the restaurant, shopping, walking, it turned out into a ghost town filled with dust, shattered glasses, people yelling, bleeding. That was a nightmare.

KARADSHEH: Seblani did a final run through the bridal suite where she and spare would spend the night after the party.

SEBLANI: Oh, very nice.

[15:55:00]

KARADSHEH: Oh-ing and eyeing over the flourishes. When the couple returned, the red rose petals thrown off the bed were all that remained of the romance they envisioned.

AHMAD SBEIH, BEIRUT BLAST SURVIVOR: Because we are alive, we can continue. And don't be sad or anything. We will continue and we will pass it, and we will make it. Inshallah.

KARADSHEH: Inshallah. And, Israa, this is very emotional for you.

SEBLANI: I don't know what to tell you but trust me there is no word to describe really what I feel. No matter how I talk.

KARADSHEH: In a city where life was turned upside down in seconds, Israa and Ahmad are just grateful to be alive. Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Istanbul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GORANI: Right, grateful to be alive, and I'm sure grateful to have each other. Thanks for watching. I'm Hala Gorani. My colleague Zain Asher continues our special coverage after this.

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END