>> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >> welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. this is a special edition of the "situation room." we're following two breaking stories right now. a race of evacuations on both sides of the globe. in afghanistan right now, it's down to only three days, three days as the u.s. mission to get americans and afghan allies safely out of kabul enters, and i'm quoting u.s. officials right

now, the most dangerous period. we're standing by for a live pentagon briefing. and along the gulf coast of the united states right now, it is just a matter of hours as hurricane ida barrelling toward shore. the storm taking a very similar track as katrina did exactly 16 years ago, threatening to make landfall tomorrow in louisiana as a category 4 hurricane. >> this will be a life-altering storm for those who aren't prepared and ready to take what ida is going to throw at us. >> we're covering this storm from all ankgles. on the ground in new orleans, but let's begin with allison chinchar at the cnn weather center. allison, what is the latest forecast? we're so, so concerned. >> we should be, really, wolf. when we look at the current statistics, 85-mile-per-hour winds sustaining gusting up to

100 miles per hour. the storm is moving into probably its most favorable environment for strengthening. it is a category 1 now, but notice how it strengthens very quickly as it moves into this very warm water. and i want to emphasize, this is not bath water. you're talking jacuzzi bawater here, which is fuel for these storms. we anticipate it to be a category 2 a few hours from now, category 3 likely today, and a category 4 right before it makes landfall tomorrow likely into the afternoon hours in louisiana. now, one of the biggest concerns from this storm is going to be storm surge. the pink color you see here, including grand isle, 10 to 15 feet of storm surge, above the first story of home. 7 to 11 feet in this purple area here, including the city of biloxi. the outer band will impact today. if you're planning to evacuate, board up your home, do it today. don't wait until tomorrow. by tomorrow, now you're really

starting to get some of the dangerous outer bands into place. here's a look at the forecast rainfall. it is not out of the question, some of these areas, to pick up in excess of a fotot of rain. further inland, nashville, memphis, louisville, kentucky, likely to get several inches from this storm, even though they are miles from the coast. >> when they say, allison, that this storm and the 10 to 15 feet it potentially could produce is extremely life-threatening, explain exactly, once again, what that means. because people don't appreciate how dangerous what is about to happen will be. >> right. again, so you're talking about the water that's coming up. so, again, imagine the base is the bottom of your home. when you're talking about all of that water, because it is being pushed inland by the storm itself, and that matter has nowhere to go so it goes up. that's the thing. when you're talkin ing 10 to 15 feet, it's above the first story

of your home. imagine you're in your home. you decided to stay and hold it out for the storm. 10 to 15 feet of storm surge comes in, and now you either have to go to the second story of your home because the first story is not an option anymore, or if you only have a first story home, you have to now go to the roof. >> stand by, allison. i want to bring nadia into this conversation. you're there in new orleans for us right now. the mayor there last night said they won't order mandatory evacuation inside the levy barrier because there's no time left. so what does that mean for people there? this is coming exactly 16 years after katrina hit new orleans. >> yeah. it is an eerie timeline when you think about 16 years to the date tomorrow. people use hurricane katrina as a timestamp here in louisiana. it is before katrina or after katrina. that's how people talk about when things happen. they all remember, almost like having ptsd, where they were

when the storm hit and where they were when the levies broke. i want to show you that preparation. we're on bourbon street. this is supposed to be lively, a party atmosphere. it is so quiet this morning as people prepare. we haeeard people getting out, putting up these boards, boarding up windows, nice and sturdy, getting ready for those hurricane force winds allison was talking to us about. you can always tell when you're in an area that's used to storms because they number the boards. one and two. they want to make sure they go back in the right place so it can fit perfectly over the window. allison also talked to us about the storm surge. look down. we've got sandbags. sandbagging locations all across louisiana as people prepare for the storm surge and the flooding. and listen to the mayor as she talks about why it is so important for people to try to get out as soon as possible. >> hurricane ida represents a dramatic threat to the people of the city of new orleans. time is not on our side.

>> reporter: not at all. that's why there are mandatory evacuations for the grand isle and four parishes, telling people they have to leave. you have to think about louisiana and new orleans as a whole as a bowl, right? so on one side of the bowl, you have lake pontchartrain. on the other side, you have the mississippi. when flooding gets in the middle of that bowl, it just shifts around and just stays there. it stays for a long time. the water doesn't have anywhere to get out. that's why so many people are leaving. hotels are forcing people to leave their hotels as they evacuate. everyone trying to get out of the city. wolf? >> be careful over there, nadia. we'll get back to you. nadia in new orleans for us. allison chinchar at the cnn weather center. much more coming up on hurricane ida, potentially a category 4 hurricane when it hits louisiana tomorrow. much more on that coming up. we're also following other breaking news. this news out of afghanistan. right now, the u.s. military now says it has conducted a drone

air strike against an isis-k militant who was believed to be planning attacks at the kabul airport. right now, at the airport, it is a truly desperate race against time to evacuate all americans with just three days before a self-imposed u.s. deadline to withdraw. looking at live pictures coming in from the airport at kabul right now. let's go to our pentagon correspondent barbara starr. barbara, i know there is a briefing coming up at the pentagon at the top of the hour. we'll get more information. but what more do we know right now about this drone strike carried out in afghanistan last night? >> reporter: well, the word came here in washington overnight, wolf, that the u.s. military had launched a drone strike from outside of afghanistan. w against a target in nangarhar province, southeastern afghanistan, a long-time stronghold of isis-k. they say they killed the target, the person they were looking for, and no civilian casualties.

we khave no additional details. there was, in fact, knowledge intelligence had firmed up in recent days. we are told this person, this isis-k planner was suspected of being involved in planning future attacks at the airport. they had had eyes on him for some time. the level of confidence in the intelligence was a bit low, so they were firming it up. when they had it in hand, they were ready to go. he was in a compound, they believe, with wife and children, family members, and they're always concerned about civilian casualties. they didn't strike until they were confident that he was clear and that they could strike free of any civilians in the immediate area. they're not calling him a senior planner, just an isis-k planner, potentially involved in manning p future attacks. what we don't know is whether he was involved in the attack against the airport, and we don't know, of course, whether he had been able to really proceed with his future planning. they do believe they interrupted

it, of course. look, the hours are ticking by at hamid karzai airport, as you say, wolf. we are getting to the point within the coming hours, we should expect, obviously, to see u.s. troops, the 5,000 or so who are there, beginning to board planes, beginning to pack up their equipment. they need to go. it is going to take them some period of time to get out of there, and it is inevitable, at some point in the not too distant future, they will start that packing up and leaving process. wolf? >> they only have three days left or so to pack up and get out. barbara, we're also learning more about some of these, you know, really brave 13 american service members who lost their lives at that terrorist bombing. first of all, what can you tell us about these men and women? >> reporter: you know, the work they were doing was so dangerous, and everybody knew it. they were as protected as could be, the pentagon says, but everybody knew, you know, they

were having to search people coming into the airport. that means putting your hands literally, running your hands over the person in front of you to try to search for weapons. let's tell you a little bit more about three of the fallen. and we have pictures to show peo people. the faces are so young and so important. i want to start with 20-year-old marine lance corporal. he and his wife were to have their first baby in three weeks. his sister said rylee wanted to be a marine his whole life and was on his first deployment. 23-year-old marine corporal decken page who joined the marines after graduating from high school in nebraska. his family says he was an animal lover who enjoyed hunting and spending times outdoors. daegan's family says he'll always be remembered for his tough outer shell and giant

heart. then we also have some details about u.s. navy corp corpsman maxton soviak. he had 12 brothers and sisters. as always, those on the front lines are so young, and they will always be remembered. as you and i often say, wolf, may their memories be a blessing. >> yeah. may they rest in peace. our deepest, deeper condolences to their families. all 13 of these service members who were killed in that attack. barbara, stand by. we'll get back to you. i know you're getting ready for the pept ntagon briefing, as we. we'll have live coverage of that coming up. i want to bring in the congressman now, a member of the house intelligence committee. thank you so much for joining us. i know you are deeply moved, as all of us are, about the loss of these service members, these heros, these u.s. military heros. i want to give you a chance to express your thoughts on this situation. go ahead. >> our hearts go out to these

families of these fallen soldiers. they're some of the finest people you'll ever meet, wolf. you've met them. i've met them. and i also want to extend our incredible gratitude to the men and women who are currently serving, guarding the airport, as well as we're just thinking about the 15 wounded soldiers. we want to pull for them. i hope all of your audience is thinking about them, as well, right now. >> we know some of those wounded u.s. service members have already been flown to the u.s. military air base in germany for treatment and, eventually, they'll come here to washington for more treatment. several of them very seriously injured in that terrorist attack. have you been briefed, congressman? you're a key member of the intelligence committee. on the u.s. military drone strike that has killed this isis-k planner? >> not on this one. we haven't received a classified briefing yet. but this is part of the over the

horizon capability that the president was referring to the other day when we went in to nangarhar province with this drone strike. we have to continue, wolf. we have to punish and bring to account anybody who was associated with this attack, and we have to disrupt any future plots. isis khorasan is a common enemy of the taliban, us, and other regional players, and so we expect their accordcooperation. >> we heard president biden say this about the terror attack at the airport. congressman, listen to this. >> those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes america harm, know this. we will not forgive. we will not forget. we will hunt you down and make you pay. >> yesterday, the white house press secretary went one step further and said the u.s. will

remove these people from the face of the earth. in other words, kill them. do you expect more air strikes along these lines, and do you want the u.s. military to go out there and kill these terrorist planners? >> yes, we need to neutralize them. they are clear and present threats to us and to our allies. they intend to do us more harm, and there are threats right now to our troops and our personnel, as well as american nationals and our allies who are coming to the airport as we speak. so we have to do everything we can to neutralize them, eliminate them, and, of course, bring to account anybody who is associated with past or current plotting. >> there was an alert sent out by the u.s. embassy in afghanistan, what's left of the u.s. embassy. it has been moved over to the kabul airport. we don't know what is going to happen after tuesday to the so-called embassy right now. but they're telling all remaining americans in

afghanistan to leave that hamid karzai airport gates immediately. intelligence officials warning that another terror attack is very, very likely. how concerned are you, congrcon congr congressman, about the security threats facing what's left of this evacuation? >> extremely concerned. you know, basically, we know that isis khorasan wants to inflict maximum damage on u.s. troops and personnel and american nationals and allies before we leave. so i think it is appropriate that we listen to the ground commanders as to what they believe needs to be done to keep our troops and our personnel safe, as well as any americans or afghan allies that we intend to evacuate. wolf, we've now evacuated more than 111,000 people in two weeks, which is a remarkable accomplishment for our brave troops and personnel on the ground. my office is trying to get another 200 people out as we

speak, and i'm trying to get as much information to make sure they can safely get to the airport and get out, especially those 10 to 30 who completed their applications, have been invited to come to the airport, and were turned away recently. we're hopeful the state department can still get these people out asap. >> it's not going to be easy. these people have been told to stay away from the gates. it is too dangerous with the terror threat out there. on thursday, congressman, you wrote in a tweet, i saw the tweet, you wrote, we should not leave afghanistanallies are evacuated safely. today you tweeted we need to evacuate our citizens and allies as quickly as possible. has your position on this matter changed? do you still believe president biden should extend the deadline beyond tuesday to evacuate? american citizens, green card holders, afghan allies, other third-country people who are stuck in afghanistan right now.

>> i think at this point, the security situation has deteriorated so rapidly, i'm going to follow the advice of the administration and our commanders on the ground as to getting our troops out and personnel. that being said, we're going to have to receive cooperation from the taliban as to anybody who is remaining past tuesday. they have every interest to cooperate and make sure they get out. we have to hold them to that. >> congressman, krishnamoorthi, thank you for joining us and stay in tougch. we appreciate it. >> thank you, wolf. breaking news out of afghanistan. diplomatic presence in kabul will be down to a skeleton staff in the next 24 hours. the next hour, we're expecting an update from the pentagon on the evacuation efforts under way.

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right now in kabul, afghanistan, we're told within the next 24 hours, what's left of the u.s. diplomatic presence on the ground will be down to what they're describing now as a skeleton paton walsh is joinin from qatar now. nick, an attack is extremely likely. >> reporter: look, we're in the closing days, if not hours, of the u.s. presence on that airport, obviously, because of that august 31st deadline, after which it's been made clear that there is a non-negotiable demand by the taliban that all uniformed personnel is gone. i doubt in the current climate anybody is going to be dicing with whether or not they can stay until the end of the day.

skeletal staff remaining is a bulk of state department employees on the airport, facilitating evacuation, and will be leavings in next 24 hours, if not already. you will obviously find a drop-off in the processing of new arrivals on the airport. we've seen that already in the publicly announced numbers. the white house talking about the period between 3:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on friday, evacuating 4,800. the next 12 hours, until 3 a this morning, evacuating 2,600. so that shows you they're tapering off fast. the reasons, it is exceptionally hard to get the people onto the airport because of the security situation, the warning that has been given to u.s. citizens to stay away or leave the area immediately, and the crowds have gone away now because of the fear that isis may strike again. i am actually hearing, remarkably, that people have been called through the gates in small numbers, straghowing peop

are still desperate, trying to do this. as of this thorningmorning, the embassy staff, who sat next to the american staff for yese syed want to get them to safety, hundreds are out but hundreds are still on. the question, how many other people can they get on? i understand staff on the airport are getting tons of messages of people still trying to get through. it remains desperate. the numbers are closing. the operation is tapering off. the end is looking close. wolf? >> looking very, very close. could be hours indeed. three days until the tuesday withdrawal deadline. nick, we'll get back to you. stand by. i want to bring in cnn national security analyst julia. thank you for joining us. president biden vowed to hunt down those responsible for the airport bombing. what message does this strike,

this stroke strike that killed this isis-k planner, what message does that send? >> reporter: that we may be leaving afghanistan, but we aren't quitting it. i think if you listened closely to the president, he is exp explaining what the post-august 31st presence of the united states is. it is clearly going to be covert operations to get the people that nick was talking about, who have not been able to get to the airport, and the president has essentially said so. the second is our counterterrorism efforts. they're over the horizon efforts, not boots on the ground. you'll see air strikes and drones. the tragic irony, 20 years later, is that is exactly our mission in 2001. it was the extension of that mission into something that we saw over the last 20 years that, i think, led to where we are. but we will keep the counterterrorism mission against isis at this stage. >> as you know, the strike, the drone strike targeted this

isis-k planner who may have been plotting to attack the airport again. that's what u.s. officials are telling us. how far does this drone strike go in thwarting potentially future attacks, which officials say are likely in these final three days? >> reporter: so as we learned in the fight against isis in iraq and syria, we are, you know -- you can bomb for only so long. there is going to be potentially a large supply of future isis members who will then join the ranks. what we're clearly trying to do now is protect our troops and the americans there, just to get them out. that's sort of a short-term function. then, of course, to retaliate against what happened this week against our soldiers. the longer-term effort is going to be, and this is going to take us -- you know, we have to get our heads around what this means, is to support the taliban in fighting against isis because isis poses a threat to us. so we will have a future interest in terms of the sharing of intelligence going forward.

i think you can see hints of that now. because we went into afghanistan. we did an air strike. i think silence from the taliban. you know, their silence is approval. >> the pentagon confirmed yesterday, as you know, juliette, that thousands of isis-k prisoners, al qaeda prisoners, other prisoners were freed, released after the fall of the afghan government. how much danger do those fighters pose to the united states, and what's the taliban approach to these other terror groups who are now potentially going to be operating full time in afghanistan? >> reporter: so history helps us a little bit in this regard. we have found just in studies of prior isis fighters and others who have gotten swept up is that a lot of them just want to get out of conflict. in other words, they were part of something and they don't want to be part of something now. one hopes that some of those released goes back and figures out what is next for them.

there will be a radicalized group that will be against the taliban or join the taliban. isis-k is filled with people who view the taliban as too conservative, as too moderate, and we're really looking at a tactical issue. you're going to see, as administration is saying, these counterterrorism efforts. they are harder without boots on the ground. they are based on essentially dependency on foreign intelligence services, including those in afghanistan. so there's no question that our capabilities are less. the question is whether we can offset the growing threat. al qaeda being, of course, another concern of ours as we move forward. >> and the fact that thousands of these prisoners are out and about, freed right now, is extremely worrisome. thank you so much, as usual, for joining us. coming up, a new chapter in the nation's mask debate, as a record number of children are hospitalized with coronavirus here in the united states. and we're also standing by

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that's because you all have the same internet. xfinity xfi. so powerful, it keeps one-upping itself. can your internet do that? time is not on our side. that's the clear message from the mayor of new orleans right now, as hurricane ida barrels into the gulf coast. ida is expected to be a category 4, category 4 hurricane at landfall tomorrow. 16 years ago to the day,

hurricane katrina made landfall in louisiana as a category 3 hurricane. we know the destruction, the damage, the death that resulted. 14 million americans are under a hurricane warning right now. officials calling hurricane ida an extremely life-threatening storm. we're all over this, our coverage. everyone in the area has to standby, evacuate, get out of the area if it is not still too late. we'll have much more on that coming up. we're also standing by for an important update from the pentagon in the next hour, right at the top of the hour. less than half an hour from now, we're going to get the latest information on the evacuation efforts in afghanistan that are under way. we'll have live coverage of that coming up from the pentagon. cnn's arlette saenz is joining us from the white house where both these situations are obviously being very closel ly monitored.

let's start with hurricane ida. what is being done now to prepare the federal government, the biden administration, for this very, very dangerous storm? >> reporter: well, the preparations are under way here at the white house as the administration is anticipating embracing for the impact of this hurricane, which could make landfall tomorrow. the president yet held a phone call with the governors of mississippi, louisiana, and alabama, to talk about the federal preparations as well as the state preparations that are under way. fema has already started deploying staff down to the region as well as resources, such as meals and tarps and generators, as they want to make sure that these states have the resources they need to come pat t -- combat the storm. the president last night approved an emergency declaration for the state of louisiana, which opens up more federal resources as they prepare for this hurricane. >> arlette, overnight, we also learned that the united states

military conducted an air strike against an isis-k militant who was planning future attacks. has the white house said anything more about this? we'll presumably get a lot more information at the top of the hour from the pentagon. >> reporter: well, an official said that president biden authorized that air strike against that oisis-k planner, bt no further details just yet from the white house about when that decision was made. now, in a short while, the president will be sitting down with his national security team. we already saw a national security adviser jake sullivan arriving here at the white house for that meeting, where he is expected to give an update on the situation at the airport, any possible threats, as well as those evacuations that are under way. just yesterday, the president's top national security advisers told him that another terror attack is likely. the administration is not just bracing for the impact potentially of another attack, but they are also trying to evacuate as many americans and afghan allies as possible, and

also conduct that military drawdown, which is set to take place by august 31st. wolf? >> all right. we'll get back to you, arlette. thank you very much. i know arlette is working her sources at the white house, as well. we'll take a quick break. much more of our special coverage here in the "situation room" right after this. for people who could use a lift new neutrogena® rapid firming. a triple-lift serum with pure collagen. 92% saw visibly firmer skin in just 4 weeks. neutrogena® for people with skin. find your rhythm. your happy place. find your breaking point. then break it. every emergen-c gives you a potent blend of nutrients so you can emerge your best with emergen-c.

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tremfya® may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms or if you had a vaccine or plan to. tremfya®. emerge tremfyant™. janssen can help you explore cost support options. we're following new developments on the coronavirus pandemic here in the united states. a florida judge has just struck down governor ron desantis' ban

on mask mandates in schools, saying the move is illegal. this comes as the u.s. surgeon general warns more children are currently hospitalized with covid in the united states than at any other time during this year and a half pandemic. we have the medical director at the baylor college of medicine, an emergency medicine physician. she's joining us right now. doctor, thanks so much for joining us. thanks for the critically important, life-saving work you're doing. what is your reaction to this news from florida? how critical is it from your perspective for schools to have the ability to mandate masmasks? >> it is extremely important, wolf. children have no other way to protect themselves, especially children under the age of 12, because they're not eligible for vaccines. telling school districts and telling students we are not allowed to tell them to wear masks is basically sending them out into the pandemic completely

unprepared. without any way to protect themselves. we need to do something. >> very important point. when you look at these record high hospitalizations among kids, children, how worried should parents be about this highly transmissible delta surge? >> parents should be worried. when you look at the numbers, it doesn't sound like a lot. currently, there are over 2 rksz -- 2 rk,200 children hospital iesiesz hospitalized. the delta variant is not the covid of 2020. delta is different. we have to respond differently. >> the u.s. surgeon general, a man we know well, said this week that the idea that covid is not that dangerous for kids is a myth, he said, and it is hurting vaccination efforts. i want you to watch what he had to say. listen to this.

>> what that means to is the fact that even though our kids do b better, it doesn't mean cod is harmless in our children. we have an opportunity to take a risk to our kids and make it even lower from covid, with the benefit of the vaccines. we've got to do that. >> he speaks, doctor, not only as the surgeon general of the united states but the father of two little kids who are not -- who clearly aren't eligible to be vaccinated yet. what do you say, doctor, who parents who are still hesitant to get their kids, if they're 12 and older, vaccinated? >> i think that any risk is too high, especially when we're talking about our young pediatric patients. it's true that many of them do fair well if they have covid, but we also know that there are children in the icus, there are children who are on ventilators. houston just reported its first pediatric death in a young man who had absolutely no underlying medical problems. it happened to him, and it can

happen to your child, as where he will -- as well. >> people need to be aware of the fact that more kids are in hospitals due to covid more than at any other time in the pandemic. very, very worrisome. doctor, thank you for joining us. >> thank you, wolf. just ahead, a growing mystery surrounding the origins of coronavirus. why china is dismissing a new u.s. intelligence report. and once again, we're standing by for an update, a live update from the pentagon right at the top of the hour. in about 15 minutes or so, we'll get the very latest on the evacuation efforts under way. lots going on. stay with us. you're in the "situation room." that's why we created low cash mode, the financial watch out that gives you the options and extra time needed to help you avoid an overdraft fee. it's one way we're making a difference. low cash mode on virtual wallet from pnc bank.

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once again, we're standing by for a very important update from the pentagon. the top of the hour, 10 minutes or so, we'll get the latest on the evacuation efforts under way in afghanistan. right now, live pictures coming in from the pentagon briefing. press secretary kirby and sergeant taylor will brief. stand by for that. meanwhile, the u.s. intelligence report on the o origins on the covid-19 virus is out, declassified. it has no conclusive answers on the origin. the 90-day investigation, ordered by by biden, leaves open the possibility the virus was leaked from a lab in wuhan. it also says the virus could have passed from animals to humans. cnn's david culver is joining us live from beijing right now. david, you've been doing enormous, fabulous reporting on all of this. china has been openly critical

of this entire u.s. investigation. what are they saying now? >> reporter: they've been incredibly critical, and that is continuing. in fact, wolf, it's ramped up. there is a relentless propaganda campaign under way. they're going forward to say, don't come into china to investigate. go to the u.s. they're pushing this conspiracy theory that the virus may have started in fora fort outside of where you are in d.c. there is no evidence of that. it seems to be having success, as they're pushing that narrative. i want to go back to the report you mentioned. as you pointed out, the two scenario scenarios, the natural origins this jumped from animals to humans, or this lab leak theory, perhaps it got on a worker and spread through wuhan, both of those still being considered. you may say, that's where we were 90 days ago when this started, and that's our reality. it didn't bring us any closer to finding a definitive answer as to what started covid-19.

one thing that was pointed out that's rather interesting is that there is low confidence that this virus was engineered in any way. nonetheless, you have the chinese reacting through their embassy right there in washington. i'll read you part of what they had to say. they had a lengthy response, and it was even longer than the unclassified report, i'll point out. they said, quote, since the outbreak of covid-19, china has taken an open, transparent, and responsible attitude. we have released information, shared the genome sequencing of the virus, and carried out international cooperation to fight the disease, all done at the earliest possible time. wolf, we know there are a lot of holes in those statements right there. they had covered up in the beginning, silencing of whistleblowers, and now they're blocking the w.h.o. for coming back for a fphase two of the studies. >> you'll be doing your reporting, and we'll be doing our reporting. david culver, thank you very much, reporting from beijing. this just coming into the "situation room," a major update on hurricane ida.

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martin luther king delivered his historic "i have a dream" speech. activists around the country are marking the anniversary with a march on for voting rights. putting pressure on lawmakers to pass voting rights legislation. cnn's suzanne malveaux is joining us from here in washington. suzanne, explain what's going on. wla what are you seeing. >> what are you hearing? >> reporter: well, wolf, it really is a renewed sense of urgency over the voting rights and a fight for voting rights around the country. you're seeing a live march, a demonstration really in the tradition of the civil rights movement. the person leading this is none other than the son of martin luther king jr. this is the third. it takes place at a historic time, as you noted, 58 years ago, his father giving that "i have a dream" speech. lots of religious activists and youth activists who are coming together, really fighting for renewed voting rights. we saw this past week house democrats passing the john lewis voting rights pacact to try to

restore some of the original legislation. not likely to pass in the senate. republicans say it is government overreach. but i had a chance to talk to king about what his father would think of this moment. why is it that generation after generation, people are still marching and fighting. take a listen, wolf. >> he'd be very proud of the young people who have been demonstrating and proud of the progress that is made after people have to demonstrate. but one day, maybe we'll get to the point where we won't have to demonstrate. my mom used to say, freedom is never permanently given. every generation has to re-earn its freedom. that's, unfortunately, where we are right now. >> reporter: and, wolf, notably absent in the group, reverend jesse jackson, who is now battling covid with his wife in the hospital in chicago. i had a chance to talk to their family to get an update there. they say that jacqueline jackson is in the icu, but that she is breathing on her own. she's responding to treatment. reverend jackson is at another

facility also responding well to treatment but taking on some of the challenges that he has from pac parkinson's disease. wolf? >> we wish them a speedy recovery. suzanne, thank you very much. suzanne malveaux reporting. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >> welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. this is a special edition of the "situation room." right now, we're moments away from an update, a very important update from the pentagon on the situation in afghanistan. this just hours after the u.s. conducted a drone strike against an isis-k planner and amid the ongoing evacuations of americans and afghan allies from kabul. we'll go live to the pentagon as soon as it begins. stand by for that. we we're also tracking hurrice