Return to Transcripts main page
The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Quake Toll Rises to Around 235 Dead in Venezuela; Jury to Return Friday after Not Reaching a Verdict on Palisades Fire Suspect; Proposed Tax on Billionaires Heads to November Ballot; CNN Gets Up Close Look at Hezbollah's Deadly Arsenal; Eyewitness Shares Experiences of Venezuelan Earthquake; U.S. Clinches Top Spot in Group D Despite 3-2 Loss to Turkey. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired June 26, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS COMMENTATOR: Topic about where he says the WNBA failed the players. He loves Caitlin Clark. He said when you've got a situation like this in the workplace, where it's going to be unusual, that why don't you have seminars, Zoom calls, work with the players?
[00:00:13]
Not because they're damsels in distress.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Yes.
BRENNAN: But because this was such an unusual situation.
BLACKWELL: Christine Brennan, I wish we had another ten minutes to talk about that last question. But I thank you for coming in.
And the book, again, is "On Her Game."
Thank you for watching. THE STORY IS with Elex Michaelson is next.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson, live in Los Angeles. Welcome to THE STORY IS.
Happening now, the search for survivors. Rescue efforts are happening across Venezuela after two deadly earthquakes devastate the region. We'll take you there live.
THE STORY IS extreme heat. Europeans and tourists dealing with record- breaking temperatures across the continent.
And THE STORY IS deadlocked jury. The Palisades Fire arson trial may end in a mistrial. We'll take you inside the courtroom.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Los Angeles, THE STORY IS with Elex Michaelson
MICHAELSON: Thanks for being with us, and thanks for your patience with my voice.
THE STORY IS Venezuela. The country is reeling from two massive earthquakes. The health minister says more than 230 people are dead, and more than 4,300 people are injured. And those figures are only expected to go up.
The interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, and top officials visited the hardest hit areas a few hours ago to assess the crisis.
Search-and-rescue efforts are ongoing at this moment, now into the second night since the quake caused extensive destruction.
Officials say the priority at this hour is to rescue people who remain trapped under rubble or are missing.
Venezuela felt nearly 140 aftershocks following two powerful earthquakes Wednesday evening. The first quake, a magnitude 7.2. Less than a minute later, an even stronger quake struck: a magnitude 7.5. The second quake, the strongest to hit the country since 1900.
The world is helping to respond. Mexico sending troops to assist. Neighboring Colombia, Spain, China, the E.U. all pledging their support. Rescue teams from the U.S. are now deploying to Venezuela.
The Trump administration announced $150 million in aid, along with aircraft and other resources.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We took over Venezuela in less than one day. And the oil is flowing, and we're getting along with them great.
We're going to, by the way, help them with their big -- They had a tremendous earthquake last night that you read about. Massive, like massive, in Caracas. But we're going to help them out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Let's go live right now to Caracas. Journalist Tony Frangie Mawad, who we spoke to last night at this time. You told us about the fact that you were trapped in an elevator when this earthquake happened --
TONY FRANGIE MAWAD, CARACAS-BASED JOURNALIST: Yes.
MICHAELSON: -- which is such a scary experience. Talk about what you've seen on the ground today, the sights and sounds.
MAWAD: Well, hi, Elex, and thank you for having me again.
The second day, I feel, has been even harder than the first day, because we finally realized the extent of the damage. Even though the government talks about 200 deaths, we suspect the number of casualties is higher, maybe even much higher.
There's reports of around 40,000 missing people coming from open- source reports online. Parts of Caracas experienced collapse of buildings and lots of damages, especially the Northern side of the city. But in La Guaria, which is a coastal town on the other side of the
mountains that surround Caracas, the damage is quite extensive. We're talking about practically a war zone. Tens of buildings that have collapsed, hundreds of types of structures on the ground. Many, many missing people and family in the coast. And it's just completely ravaged.
So, another element is that this day, the state has been practically absent. They just gave two broadcasts through the day with the -- with the updates of the number of injured and official death toll.
The army hasn't been widely deployed, or at least not in a -- in a visible way. And what has been, at least, exciting or more optimistic is the fact that Venezuelan society, civil society has moved to -- to respond to this with what they have on their hands.
So, we're seeing neighborhood organizations, religious organizations, the schools, families, civil associations, just establishing relief centers and mobilizing to help the people and -- and try to find the resources and the tools needed. But -- but of course, we need much more at this moment in Venezuela.
MICHAELSON: So, it sounds like what you're saying is that the civilians are stepping up, but the government, in your view, is not. What more would you like to see from your government?
MAWAD: I mean, it just shows the extent of mismanagement that Venezuela has been experiencing in the last two decades.
This is a country that endured the largest economic contraction outside of war in modern history in the last ten years; that endured a humanitarian crisis; and the biggest mass migration in the history of the Americas.
[00:05:13]
And now we're the consequences of that. The state has no capacity to act. There's no resources. There's not enough equipment. There's not enough tools and -- and much-needed things for the people trapped in the buildings that collapsed.
And institutions are just absence and -- and hollow out. We don't even have a -- we're not even seeing the official seismic organization, earthquake organization doing reports in Venezuela right now.
So -- so, there's clearly a vacuum of authority. And at least we're seeing a society that has learned to thrive and has learned to be resilient in the conflict experience during the last years and is now trying to respond. We're all volunteering and organizing to help everybody who's trapped or injured in this moment.
MICHAELSON: And finally, Tony, we're so appreciative of your very professional reporting --
MAWAD: Thank you. MICHAELSON: -- about what you're seeing on the ground. But I'm wondering, just on a human level, what this is like for you to see your friends and family and fellow countrymen trapped, to see what's going on in the streets. How are you handling this emotionally?
MAWAD: It's been really tough, to be honest. Yesterday I feel like it was more in shock. But today, just seeing the extent of -- of dead people, of injured people, of people that are trapped; and just opening up social media and seeing the amount of reports of missing people or -- or just people asking for help in areas where -- where the authorities haven't even arrived yet, or rescue efforts haven't even managed to get there yet, has been devastating. I'm saying this with watery eyes in the moment.
I actually had a bit of an emotional breakdown in the evening today. It was -- it was -- it's been really, really overwhelming, to be honest, really sad.
And it -- it affects, you know, every dimension. It's not only the human toll, which is horrible. It's not only the -- the vulnerability of the country as a whole. But it's even seeing the landscape of the city just completely changed and ravaged. And -- and it just affects our collective memory and our identity as Caracanians and as Venezuelans.
MICHAELSON: Well, it's -- it's too much for a human being to process all of those images. But we appreciate you sharing some important perspective from the ground, Tony. Our best to you --
MAWAD: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: -- and to -- to all of your people. Thank you so much.
MAWAD: Thank you so much.
MICHAELSON: We'll continue to cover that story throughout the next two hours.
But we also want to take you to Washington, where House Speaker Mike Johnson is sending lawmakers home early as Republicans remain deadlocked over President Trump's SAVE America Act.
A small group of Republican holdouts has been blocking House business to pressure the Senate into voting on the president's voter I.D. bill.
Johnson met with Trump for several hours on Thursday. There you can see Speaker Johnson walking out of the White House. Clearly, the president did not sign the bill as part of that.
Afterwards, the president urged the holdouts to stop grandstanding and end the stalemate.
Now, also in Washington, the U.S. Supreme Court handed the Trump administration two major victories in cases involving immigration.
The justices ruled that President Trump can end temporary protected status, or TPS, for hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians.
TPS allows people from countries hit by armed conflict or natural disasters to live and work legally in the U.S.
In a separate decision, the court ruled immigration officials can turn away asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border.
In dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned, quote, "More people will die."
The White House says people seeking asylum in the U.S. will be sent elsewhere.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN MILLER, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR POLICY: The fact that there might be pockets of Haiti where there's higher crime rates, guess what? There's pockets of Chicago with crime rates just as high, right? There's pockets of cities like St. Louis with crime just as high. Pockets of Los Angeles, crime just as high.
It has never been the case that having communities that have high crime rates is a basis for asylum. Never has been. Never will be.
America's doors are closed fully to asylum seekers. We've set up agreements where, if you want asylum, then we will find a country elsewhere in the world to take you. It's very simple, a very elegant, a very complete solution.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: As many as 350,000 Haitians could be affected by that TPS ruling. Many of them are in the U.S. states of Florida, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.
Ohio's Republican governor calls the ruling a mistake that's not good for the country or for his state.
Haiti has been in chaos since at least 2022, with heavily armed gangs controlling much of the capital and countryside.
Florida's hospitality industry could lose hundreds of workers if so many Haitians are now forced to leave the U.S. Many of them say they plan to fight the high court's ruling.
[00:10:06]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANTCHA ETIENNE, BLACK ALLIANCE FOR JUST IMMIGRATION: We're going to stick together. We're going to keep on fighting.
TESSA PETIT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FLORIDA IMMIGRANT COALITION: The battle is not over.
My people, they can't go back. It's real. The reality in Haiti is real.
PAUL CHRISTIAN NAMPHY, POLITICAL DIRECTOR, FAMILY ACTION NETWORK MOVEMENT: There is no grounds for terminating Haiti TPS, based on the country conditions inside Haiti. This is absolutely absurd.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Here in Southern California, jurors in the federal criminal trial of Palisades Fire suspect are expected to return to court on Friday after they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict.
The jury sent a note Thursday to the judge, indicating that they had reached a verdict in the case against him. But shortly afterwards, they sent another note, saying they were deadlocked.
Prosecutors say he intentionally set the blaze that later became the deadly Palisades wildfire. However, he has maintained his innocence. His attorney spoke outside the courtroom shortly after the judge read the jury's note.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN HANEY, RINDERKNECHT'S ATTORNEY: A lot of anxiety, you can imagine. His life's on the line. Very stressful time for him. And he's -- he's hanging in there. He's doing great.
So, it's been a long run for him. He's been locked up for ten months. And his fate is here today or maybe tomorrow, and we'll see which direction this takes tomorrow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: CNN's Nick Watt spent the day inside the courtroom.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The jury deliberated for about 13 hours, and they sent the judge a note saying, "We cannot reach a unanimous decision, not on any of the counts against Jonathan Rinderknecht." The word "cannot" was underlined.
The judge sent a note back: "Is there anything the court can do to help?"
"No," came the very definitive answer.
Listen, this case is built entirely on circumstantial evidence. The prosecution says Jonathan Rinderknecht was angry, hated the rich, set this fire as revenge.
He was definitely on the hill the night the fire broke out. He had a lighter in the glove box of his car, but nobody saw him set the fire. There's no video of him setting the fire, and he did not confess to setting the fire.
So, what happens next is the judge and both sides, both legal sides, are trying to figure out what they do next and in what order. But this looks like it is heading towards a mistrial. If they can't reach unanimous decisions, this will become a mistrial.
And then the government has to decide, do they try to charge this guy and try him again?
Now, of course, there are also civil trials. The city, the state, various other entities are being sued by people who lost their homes.
And interestingly, we have not seen a lot of people who lost their homes at this trial. There are not people here baying for this guy's blood.
In fact, one woman told me, "This guy is a patsy. I don't want him convicted." She and others are hoping to find truth in those civil trials.
But we will find out tomorrow whether this one guy will be found responsible for this fire that burned 37 square miles of Los Angeles, destroyed over 6,000 structures, and killed 12 people.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Nick Watt in downtown Los Angeles. Nick, thank you.
Let's bring in our panel. We're joined by civil rights attorney Lisa Bloom; and the host of "The John Kobylt Show" on KFI-AM 640, John Kobylt. Welcome back to both of you.
LISA BLOOM, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: So, what this guy is accused of doing is setting a fire on July 1.
BLOOM: Right.
MICHAELSON: Firefighters said this fire is out. Well, it wasn't out. And then six days later, on January 7th, got these huge winds. Fire takes off. It becomes the Palisades Fire. And then we end up having 7000 structures burned.
BLOOM: That's right.
MICHAELSON: What do you make -- from a legal perspective, what do you make of this case?
BLOOM: January 1 to January 7. That's right.
And we know that's how the fire started on January 1. And it became a conflagration on January the 7th. The question is, did this guy do it, and did he do it intentionally?
And listen, I have dear friends and family in the Palisades. It's heartbreaking to me to think about this fire, but we don't want to convict somebody unless we can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.
And the defense, I think, was pretty strong in this case. It could have been fireworks, their expert said. A nice reminder, as fireworks season is coming up, to please be careful, because that does start a lot of fires, right? It could be fireworks. It could have been something else.
The bottom line is, do they have enough to connect him beyond a reasonable doubt? I don't see it. And I think the jury's deadlocked; basically agrees with that position.
MICHAELSON: And we know that on January 1st, there were a bunch of illegal fireworks that were set off in that area. What do you think of this case? And just sort of the larger issue, which is so frustrating for people that live in the Palisades and nearby, as you do.
JOHN KOBYLT, HOST, "THE JOHN KOBYLT SHOW": If I'm on the jury, common sense is he was the only guy in the surveillance video who was near the fire within 30 or 40 feet.
Same thing with the GPS on his phone signals, bouncing off the towers.
So, he was the only guy there. If he didn't do it, what did it? Fireworks? Well, what fireworks? Where is the evidence that there were fireworks?
[00:15:09]
He -- you know, he had a very sketchy past. He had a lot of animosity to wealthy people, animosity to the Palisades. He's going on ChatGPT, trying to conjure up apocalyptic fire images. And ChatGPT said, No.
I mean, if I was in that jury room, I'd probably be going crazy.
BLOOM: But beyond a reasonable doubt?
KOBYLT: I don't have -- I don't have a --
BLOOM: Because a lot of people hate the rich. It doesn't mean they started a fire.
KOBYLT: But it's a good motivation these days.
BLOOM: Yes, but --
KOBYLT: It's like the guy, Luigi Mangione.
BLOOM: Yes, but common sense is one thing. Probably. Maybe. Yes, maybe. But beyond a reasonable doubt to send him to prison for 45 years. That's what they have to find.
KOBYLT: As a juror, I would vote beyond a reasonable doubt that he's guilty.
BLOOM: You'd be here. I'm not there. MICHAELSON: Do you think he's a patsy the way that that one woman
said?
KOBYLT: Well, you know what? That's an interesting point. Because I tell you --
MICHAELSON: That the city, the state, all screwed up.
BLOOM: Yes.
MICHAELSON: And that if they put attention on this guy, it takes some of the attention off of them.
KOBYLT: I don't know if it's designed to make him a patsy, but he did. He set a fire that should have been and was taken care of in a few hours, except the L.A. Fire Department fled the scene and didn't do the follow-up over the next few days.
We all know there was smoldering. We know there was smoke. We know that they ran away. They got interfered with from the state Parks and Rec. So yes, if I had a choice, I'd rather see, you know, Karen Bass up on charges than put this guy away.
BLOOM: And you know what? That evidence didn't come in about the fire department's alleged incompetence.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
BLOOM: The jury didn't get to hear about that.
MICHAELSON: And they will be hearing about that in the future trials that are focused on the city and the state.
BLOOM: That's right.
MICHAELSON: Let's talk about another big issue that just broke tonight here in California that's making national headlines, which is this question about a wealth tax and, frankly, a question about the Democratic Party and where the focus should be.
BLOOM: Right.
MICHAELSON: We want to put a headline from "Politico": "California Wealth Tax Fight Moves to Voters."
And so, what we're talking about here is there's this one union, SEIU, united healthcare workers union, is putting on the ballot in November a wealth tax, which would be a one-time 5 percent tax on the assets of every Californian that has over $1 billion.
BLOOM: Right?
MICHAELSON: And it is now headed to the ballot. Governor Newsom has fought it, saying this is going to drive business from California.
Almost every Democrat running for governor was against this, except for the billionaire. But yet, polls show it could very likely pass.
BLOOM: That's because they have to take money from billionaires to run for governor or run for any statewide office, which is very unfortunate.
I am very much in favor of this. If the billionaire can't afford a one-time tax of 5 percent, I'm sorry, to help pay for health and education for people in California. It's California that helped them become billionaires.
All of the people who work here, who work for them, this beautiful state, we need funding somewhere. And why not take it from billionaires?
I think we have too much income inequality. This is a very small price for them to pay for all the benefits that they've received.
MICHAELSON: John.
KOBYLT: I didn't start Amazon, for example. I don't deserve to have $200 billion or $300 billion like Jeff Bezos. He did the work. He created it.
Most of the people complaining sit on their rear ends all day. They don't do anything. How many -- how many Americans are on OnlyFans, are on porn, are gambling online all day?
And meantime, Bezos builds this -- this gigantic worldwide shopping center that we all use several times a day.
BLOOM: And shouldn't he pay taxes?
KOBYLT: Yes, he should pay taxes.
MICHAELSON: He pays amongst the highest tax rates of any state in the country. I mean, part of the challenge, Lisa, my question is --
BLOOM: Well, he -- listen, but he can afford more taxes than somebody at the bottom.
MICHAELSON: But the problem is that that, you know, 40 percent of Californias entire revenue is paid for by the top 1 percent.
BLOOM: OK.
MICHAELSON: They're already paying amongst the highest.
KOBYLT: Is that enough?
MICHAELSON: If you start pulling, if they start leaving, as they're all threatening to, and some already have --
BLOOM: Let them go. We have over 200 of them.
MICHAELSON: Where do we make up -- where do we make up the rest of that money? BLOOM: We will make it up. And I don't think they're all going to
leave. I've heard this every time we talk about a tax increase on the rich. Boo-hoo, they're going to leave.
This is a magnificent state. It's a wonderful place to live. They can afford 5 percent over their first billion one time to help pay for health and education.
KOBYLT: How do we know it's one time?
BLOOM: Because that's what the law does.
MICHAELSON: Well, it does say -- it does say that in the law.
BLOOM: That's what the law says. That's how we know.
KOBYLT: Until they pass another one in five years.
BLOOM: OK. Well, then we'll argue about that one.
MICHAELSON: It sort of raises -- It sort of raises --
KOBYLT: What right does anybody have to take a guy's money that he honestly earned?
BLOOM: Well, then should we have no taxes?
KOBYLT: To that extent -- no, but -- but we have -- we have reasonable taxes.
The California budget has more than tripled in the last 15 years. At some point it's enough, because I've been tracking all the fraud stories and all the waste stories.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
BLOOM: Well, let's go after that. That's fine.
KOBYLT: If they came to me for tax increase, and I would say, well, what is it going for?
MICHAELSON: Yes, yes. All right. Well --
BLOOM: Health and education.
MICHAELSON: We love you guys debating. So, in the next hour we're going to talk about the issue of immigration.
BLOOM: Right.
MICHAELSON: We're going to talk about J.D. Vance. We're grateful that both of you are sticking with us. But we're going to keep on with other news right now.
And THE STORY IS the financial markets. And here's a look at the Asian markets. Asian markets, all in the red right now. That's not good. [00:20:08]
There's a different story on the European markets. Both markets reacting to a bad day on Wall Street on Thursday. Clearly, reacting in different ways.
Europeans and tourists endure more record-breaking heat. We'll talk about that coming up: when they can expect a break from the heat wave.
Plus, the U.S. team facing pushback from Turkey in their World Cup match that ended just moments ago. You'll hear how it all played out on the pitch right here in Southern California.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:25:05]
MICHAELSON: The U.S. winning streak is broken as they head into the knockout stage of the World Cup. The U.S. team wrapped up their final group game a short time ago, losing to Turkey 3-to-2.
The match was tied until the final minutes of extra time, when the Turkish team scored the goal that put them over the top.
The Americans, though, kept many of their top players on the bench, because they'd already clinched the top spot in Group D. It didn't matter if they won or lost. They kind of played like that.
The U.S. beat Paraguay and Australia in their first two matches. They'll likely face Bosnia-Herzegovina in the knockout stage on July 1 in the Bay Area.
On the other side of the group, Australia and Paraguay tied, nil-nil. That means the Socceroos are advancing, but Paraguay still has a chance as third-place finishers.
In Group E, Ecuador pulled off an upset, beating four-time World Cup champion Germany 2-to-1. The German team had already secured the top spot in its group, but the victory for Ecuador means the squad came from behind to punch their ticket to the knockout stage.
In Dallas, Japan and Sweden tied at 1-1. Both teams are moving ahead, with Japan taking the No. 2 spot in Group F, followed by Sweden at No. 3.
And in Kansas City, it was party hardy as Dutch fans celebrated their team's 3-to-1 victory over Tunisia. The Netherlands clinched the prime spot in the group, while the Tunisians are headed home.
Parts of Europe are facing another day of a record-breaking heat wave, temperatures spiking above 104 F in Paris and other towns and cities across France.
In Rome, tourists tried to stay cool using paper and battery-operated fans. Remember, there's not much air conditioning there.
Across the country, five heat-related deaths have been reported, including a vineyard worker and a homeless man.
A rare red extreme heat warning has been extended for a third day into Friday for parts of Southern England. And the Netherlands issued its first ever red alert for heat on Friday.
Spain broke national temperature records this week, with the heat turning deadly very quickly: 212 deaths have been linked to the heat wave there over the past four days.
The forecast does call for a bit of easing towards the weekend in the U.K. and France, with the most significant relief coming on Sunday.
Well, there are no claims of responsibility yet after the latest strike on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. is pointing a finger at Tehran, saying that an Iranian drone hit the cargo ship on Thursday.
A British maritime group says the vessel was damaged, but it reported no casualties or environmental impact. The incident happened as shipping traffic was starting to pick up on the heels of the interim agreement between the U.S. and Iran.
The U.N. is now suspending its evacuation of about 11,000 seafarers who've been stranded in the Gulf because of that war.
Since March, Hezbollah has launched more than 7,000 rockets, missiles, and drones at Israel and Israeli forces. That is according to Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond takes a look at Hezbollah's deadly arsenal.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A Hezbollah drone cruises undetected over Southern Lebanon, propellers whirring until its target comes into view.
A group of six Israeli soldiers caught off-guard in front of a tank. The feed cuts at the moment of impact, which killed a 19-year-old sergeant.
He is the first Israeli soldier to be killed by this type of drone, but not the last.
The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has deployed these cheap, explosive, strapped, first-person-view drones to deadly effect. Dozens of videos from Hezbollah show they've struck tanks, air defense systems, and unsuspecting troops in Southern Lebanon and Northern Israel.
The Israeli military says Hezbollah's drones have killed at least 12 soldiers since the current conflict erupted in March, one third of all fatalities.
The key to their lethality: a spool carrying miles of thin fiber optic cable that keeps these drones tethered to their pilot, rather than emitting easy-to-detect radio signals.
Ukraine has been combating these fiber optic drones for two years, but Ukrainian officials say their Israeli counterparts didn't heed their warnings about the emerging threat.
The Israeli military, now scrambling to catch up deploying mesh netting like this to protect troops operating in or near Lebanon and providing them with shotguns and fragmenting rounds to take out approaching drones.
The military is also enlisting the private sector to help track this new threat, using acoustic, optical, and radar-based sensors.
SHAI KURIANSKY, CEO, AIRWAYZ: So, what we're seeing here is a scenario where we want to protect this area. When a drone is crossing the line, the protective line, according to the policy, then the controller will get an alert and will know that there is a threat, a threat coming.
DIAMOND (voice-over): Shai Kuriansky's company, Airwayz, is among those springing into action to give Israeli troops advance warning of incoming drone threats.
KURIANSKY: Something very small that you can hardly detect is coming toward you. It does not transmit anything. You must fuse the data from multiple sensors to map the sky accurately. This is what our system does.
DIAMOND: So, do you feel a real sense of urgency to solve this problem?
KURIANSKY: It's our children out there in Lebanon that are getting those -- those explosives and -- and we don't -- we will not wait with that. Of course, it's urgent.
DIAMOND (voice-over): Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Friendly coming in.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Jeremy.
A massive search-and-rescue effort is underway in Venezuela. The death toll is rising after two back-to-back earthquakes, collapsed homes and buildings. We'll take you back live to Venezuela, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:35:53]
MICHAELSON: Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories.
The death toll from a pair of earthquakes that struck Venezuela has climbed to more than 230 people and is expected to rise. The country's health minister says more than 4,300 people are injured. Rescue efforts are ongoing, with hundreds of people either trapped
under rubble or missing. Countries around the world are sending aid.
People in Europe are enduring more record-breaking heat. There have been hundreds of heat-related deaths in Spain, Italy and France in the past week.
And extreme heat alerts are in effect in Southern England and parts of the Netherlands.
There is some relief in sight as the forecast calls for some cooling off by Sunday.
Sources tell CNN that lawyers for Luigi Mangione discussed the possibility of a plea deal in his federal case. Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO in December of 2024.
He is facing prosecutions both on the state and federal levels.
A source said the discussions with his attorneys did not result in any agreement.
A massive search-and-rescue effort is underway across Venezuela at this hour. Emergency teams are on the scene for the second night after two deadly earthquakes struck back-to-back.
Many people lost everything. There is an urgent need for humanitarian aid and shelter.
The powerful tremors brought down homes and buildings in the capital of Caracas and throughout the country.
Venezuela has felt nearly 140 aftershocks following two powerful earthquakes back-to-back on Wednesday evening. The second quake was the strongest to hit the country since 1900. Venezuela is at the very beginning of what will be a long recovery process.
A seismologist and advocate for earthquake safety, who has worked for the USGS, explains the immediate effects of the quakes and what the country will have to deal with in the long run. Here's Dr. Lucy Jones.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. LUCY JONES, SEISMOLOGIST: Caracas is not on top of the fault. It started to the West. The rupture did move towards Caracas, and -- and that tends to focus energy. But it's beyond the -- the Eastern edge of the fault.
So, to the West of it, there are other communities that are -- that received stronger shaking than Caracas did.
Earthquakes, all disasters break a system where it's already weak. So, the problems that Venezuela was already having with its economy, with the distribution of health care, all of those are just going to become much, much worse. The one thing they can do, if we could -- if the international
community comes together and gets aid in quickly, that helps a lot, because you want to get the economy moving again.
We see it as this immediate disaster, but the big, big earthquakes, the big disasters go on. They disrupt economies for years, for decades.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Several countries have already mobilized aid and personnel to help Venezuela. El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, France, the U.S. are among the countries sending search-and-rescue teams.
The U.S. has pledged $150 million in aid. China, Brazil and some Caribbean nations have also offered humanitarian aid.
Venezuelans in the U.S. are ready to send aid, but their distance from the disaster is making it difficult to find out what's needed or how their loved ones are doing.
Union City, new jersey, is home to one of the largest Venezuelan communities in the New York metro area. One community leader says they are ready to help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELINA GARCIA, FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, UNITED CHILDREN'S MUSIC PROJECT: It's been horrific. Since last night, of course, as soon as we all found out, I have -- many families that we serve in our organization, teachers, myself, who we were completely devastated to see all the images that are coming out from Venezuela.
There's -- Venezuela is not prepared to this -- for this type of catastrophe, because we never really have that many issues with natural disasters. We've had some, but definitely, no earthquakes of this magnitude.
And they're older structures in Venezuela. The buildings, the houses are made with concrete, adobe. And so, everybody is just completely devastated for what's been happening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Joining me now is Dariana Vivas. She lives in Venezuela. But was -- she lives in Valencia, Venezuela, but was in Caracas when the quake hit.
[00:40:02]
Thank you so much for being with us. Walk us through what that quake felt like
DARIANA ZAMBRANO-VIVAS, RESIDENT OF VALENCIA, VENEZUELA: Well, hi. Thank you for the invite. It was really hard for us. I've -- I've been in some earthquakes
myself since I was a kid. But nothing like the one yesterday with my family.
That was about 15 minutes after the earthquake hit where we -- we were in a restaurant having almost dinner. And we never knew that we were going to find that. We just felt, you know, like everything was, was moving under our feet.
And tried to leave the building we were at and just waited there for it to happen and end.
And we started driving, and we started to realize how big this was.
We never knew or expected something like this to happen in our country. It's been really hard for us. It was so scary for us. But now that I've seen everything that, you know, happened to so many families, we felt it like we felt nothing, you know what I mean?
MICHAELSON: Compared -- in comparison to what they were dealing with?
ZAMBRANO-VIVAS: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Yes. I mean, we were just showing some of the vertical videos that you shot yourself today as you were driving around.
Can you describe for us -- that's not one that you shot, but that -- that shows some of the extent of the damage during it. Can you explain to us -- this is some of what you shot today --
ZAMBRANO-VIVAS: yes.
MICHAELSON: -- what you saw, what it's like in the streets?
ZAMBRANO-VIVAS: Well, I think that was my last shot. After that video specifically -- specifically that video, I turned my -- my camera off, because I couldn't resist. Like I was trying to keep memories or history for my children and, you know, my offspring.
But I felt disrespectful of doing that, because I felt right there that, you know, our people, our Venezuelan people were under those collapsed buildings.
So, we saw so many families on the streets crying with their suitcases and children. You know, they couldn't go into their homes again for until today. I think they're still outside on the streets waiting for anything, you know, happens that they can return to their homes.
MICHAELSON: So, we just reported on -- on the -- the efforts from countries around the world, the governments to try to help Venezuela.
But there's a lot of individuals watching right now that would like to do something to help. What's the best way that our viewers can help you and your fellow countrymen as you deal with this disaster?
ZAMBRANO-VIVAS: Well, they are already doing it. We received so many messages that they are praying for us. We are in God's hands.
And so many people are organizing places to collect, you know, anything that can help here. Families that are left, like, with nothing. They lose their homes. They -- they lost their loved ones.
So, anything that they have that could help us: food, medicine. The church itself has made available several hundreds of thousand dollars available for donations here in Venezuela to assist the need one.
MICHAELSON: Wow. It is remarkable to see the world coming together to help. And when we see those images, you understand why.
Dariana Vivas, thank you so much for sharing your story. We're glad that you are OK. And we're grateful for you being able to tell us what's going on, on the ground.
ZAMBRANO-VIVAS: Thank you. Thank you very much for this.
MICHAELSON: As we mentioned, search-and-rescue efforts continue across Venezuela, and charities are on the ground providing aid to those affected.
For more information about how you can help the earthquake victims, we've put together a list of some of the most respected charities.
[00:45:03]
You can go to CNN.com/impact for a look at how you can get involved and how you can help.
Other news now. The Reflecting Pool is to be drained again while police search for a person who officials say could be behind some of the damage. That story and more when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:50:05]
MICHAELSON: On the World Cup, the U.S. winning streak is broken. But it's OK.
Andy Scholes is outside of the stadium in Inglewood, California, where some fans still had a good time in what was essentially a meaningless game. Right, Andy?
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes, Elex. You know, it was a meaningless game.
You wouldn't have known that this was a meaningless game, though, ahead of time. I tell you what, this atmosphere here at I would say SoFi Stadium, but it's called Los Angeles Stadium right now. I mean, it was absolutely electric.
But the U.S., they had already won the group. Nothing really to play for in this match. Turkey, they're already eliminated from this World Cup. But I tell you
what, you would have never known being at this game. And these fans wanted to win this game so bad.
The get-in ticket price was still upwards of $1,700 before the match. Just so many fans want to be a part of this World Cup, a part of the United States, you know, being in this situation where they're playing so well. And the fans wanted to win this game so badly.
But Elex, in the end, it just -- it was really a buzz kill, because in the 98th minute, I mean, everyone kind of just thought, oh, this game is over. It's going to end up being a tie. And in the end, Turkey scores in the 98th minute.
And I tell you what, the crowd went absolutely silent. There you know, were, you know, probably, you know, I would say 5 to 600, upwards of 1000 Turkey fans. They were making some noise, but it was really just shock at what just happened.
But, you know, I was just in the U.S. national team's post-game pressers. Brenden Aaronson and Sebastian Berhalter, they both said, despite losing that way in, you know, kind of devastating fashion, not going to affect this team whatsoever.
They still are going to have momentum as they head now to the knockout stages, the round of 32, where they're going to take on Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday in Santa Clara, California.
So, the team gets to stay here on the West Coast, gets to stay here in California. You're just going to go a little bit up North.
But the team says they are still confident. You know, they would, of course, love to have won this one for the fans. But it's not going to affect, they said, the way they were going to go into the next game.
And Elex, you've got to remember, too, they changed out nine players going into this game. They gave a lot of guys an opportunity to make a start in a World Cup, you know, which they think is actually going to be very beneficial.
Because if those guys now are needed because of injury or whatnot in these future games, they're going to be ready, based on the experience they got here tonight against Turkey.
MICHAELSON: And quite the crowd. Some of the names tonight that we saw, Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Paris Hilton, Owen Wilson, Leonardo Dicaprio, Will Ferrell, Kamala Harris, Usha Vance. I mean, it was kind of a who's who, huh?
SCHOLES: Certainly was. And everyone got a nice laugh with Ed Norton talking to Brad Pitt in the suite. You know, going back to the old "Fight Club" days.
But yes, it was a star-studded crowd.
And again, Elex, this game had no stakes. There was nothing on the line. And it was the first time the United States had ever been in this position in a third group stage game. No stress at all. Could kind of just relax.
But everyone was still here, because everyone wants to be a part of this journey with Team USA now, after the amazing performances against Paraguay in the first game and then against Australia in the second game.
And now here things. I mean -- I'll tell you what. This might have ended up in a loss, but this was one thrilling, thrilling game.
I mean they were -- they took the lead immediately in the third minute. It was the second fastest goal in U.S. men's national team history.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
SCHOLES: Then they went down because, you know, the defense had some cracks.
But again, this was our -- basically our B team out there today.
And then they came back. They tied it on that Berhalter goal in the second half, which was quite the strike. So, I mean, Elex, so many positives to take from this match.
Pulisic came in in the 58th minute. The crowd erupted when he came in. Every time he touched the ball, it was electric. The fans, Elex, wanted him to score so badly. And he was close a couple of times, but it didn't happen.
You know, we're hoping that the momentum is not stalled by this loss here. And based on what the players are saying, that's not going to be the case.
MICHAELSON: Well, Andy, we will talk to you in our next hour, and we'll hear from some of those players. Great to have you up late with us after a fun night here in Southern California.
More news when we come back right here on THE STORY IS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:59:02]
MICHAELSON: Remember in 2016 when they promised to drain the swamp? Well, the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool will be drained, inspected, and repaired after July 4th celebrations.
The National Park Service said in a court filing Wednesday that work will start after the Independence Day holiday.
The filing echoed the president's vandalism claims, saying that dozens of fence posts were thrown into the pool, and the bottom was cut with a sharp object. The NPS also asked for help identifying the woman from this security
footage. They say they're investigating her for destruction of government property.
Thanks for watching the first hour of THE STORY IS. The next hour starts right now.
Thanks for being with us. Live in Los Angeles, I'm Elex Michaelson.
Coming up, THE STORY IS a race to rescue. Frantic search operations ongoing in Venezuela after powerful back-to-back earthquakes. We'll speak to an aid worker on the ground as the death toll continues to rise.
THE STORY IS Supreme rulings. The nation's highest court handing Donald Trump two major victories, giving the president more power in his hardline stance on immigration.
And THE STORY IS World Cup nail-biter. Team USA losing a tight match to Turkey. But the dream continues.
