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IDF Conducts Raid On Gaza With Tanks Before Withdrawing; Israeli Tanks Raid Gaza Ahead Of Next Stages Of Combat; Manhunt Underway After Gunman Kills 18 In Maine. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired October 26, 2023 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Meantime, the IDF has conducted a targeted raid overnight in northern Gaza. This video, published by the Israeli Defense Forces, shows images of tanks and armored vehicles, including a bulldozer moving in. The tanks firing artillery, before ultimately leaving the area. The IDF says it's part of preparations for the next stages of combat, which include a ground incursion. CNN International diplomatic editor Nic Robertson joins me now from Sderot. Nic, this raid, the strongest sign yet that we've seen that Israel's war on Hamas is intensifying with the potential for a ground incursion to come soon.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and we were watching it from right here last night. Although because the IDF hadn't announced it was a ground incursion, we didn't know what we were witnessing. But over my shoulder in that direction there, was tank fire going across the hill. We could hear gunfire going as well and some detonations we hadn't heard before. But I'm going to ask John to show you what appear to be some fires that have just lit on the hillside behind us there.

We've been watching what's going on here. And in the past half an hour or so, several -- half a dozen, probably flares have been fired up from the ground and we can't tell whether they're coming from inside of Gaza or outside of Gaza. But those flares have been coming very close to this town here and are falling in fields. Fields that are on this side of the Gaza fence, on the Israel side of the Gaza fence. And it appears to us -- and I have to say, it appears at this stage because we don't know for sure as if the flares are being fired up from the Gaza side and they're landing on the Israeli side. And if it is Hamas or another group firing up those flares, it could be because they're worried about the potential for an incursion coming from here.

Nothing we've seen indicates an incursion is about to come from around where we are at the moment. But each night we see different developments. We learn different things from the IDF in the morning. But right now these fires that you're looking at here have been started, it appears, on the Israeli side of the of the border fence by flares that were fired into the sky. We've seen a low level drone operating in this area. Has heard small arms fire as well. We may get more clarity on this in the -- in the coming hours.

But I just think it does speak to what you're saying. The volatility around the border fence right now, the perception on both sides that there can be a larger scale ground incursion bigger than the one we witnessed last night that could come there in the coming days -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, obviously a fluid situation. Nic, please keep us posted on what you're seeing.

Let's dig deeper now with Israeli Defense Forces, International spokesman Jonathan Conricus. Jonathan, thank you so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us. What we witnessed last night that Nic was just describing, it sounds like a staging operation for a larger ground incursion. Would you say that the Israeli Defense Forces are delaying this incursion in the hope that you can get more hostages being held by Hamas out.

JONATHAN CONRICUS, IDF INTERNATIONAL SPOKESMAN: Yes, Hi. Thank you for having me, Boris. I'm not going to talk about the hostages because it is extremely sensitive and we all know that this is what Hamas plan to do to take, to abduct our women, children, babies and elderly and hold them against their will in Gaza. Sensitive and dealt with by other parts of Israel.

What I can say is that the ground forces are ready, prepared, equipped and may also say eager to maneuver into the Gaza Strip and take the fighting to Hamas, where they are hiding underground. As they're hiding behind their civilians underground in their tunnels. We're ready and the raid that you saw yesterday that you spoke about, I think you described it correctly. We are preparing the battlefield for future operations.

SANCHEZ: I just want to let our viewers know we were looking at a live image of Sderot where Nic Robertson was. Another flare appeared to come up over into the skyline. We're going to keep an eye on that there.

Jonathan, I want to get to questions of strategy because our reporting indicates that the United States has advised the IDF to focus attacks on precision air strikes. The two strikes today that killed some of the architects of the October 7th attack, as well as precise special operations raids inside Gaza, like those that were carried out last night. But is that going to be enough to eliminate Hamas?

[15:35:00]

Does the IDF need to carry out a ground incursion in Gaza?

CONRICUS: Right, so let's disambiguate a bit. The cooperation between Israel and the U.S. is tremendous, of strategic importance. But Israel enjoys full freedom of movement. This is an Israeli war against an Israeli enemy. And we are going to defeat that enemy, of course, with U.S. assistance when it comes to weapons and equipment. So while we have very close ties, the directives that are given to the IDF are those of the Israeli cabin. Full stop.

Second thing, we're looking at Hamas -- and I don't want to confuse between what happened last night, which was a raid, but it wasn't special forces. These were high quality infantry units, but they were also in tanks. So this isn't special operations and this isn't stealth in the depth of enemy terrain. This was an early, small tactical incursion into the Gaza Strip where we prepared the battlefield. Some friction with the enemy. We made them pay some certain casualties. They fired at us, we retaliated, fire. And then before morning came, we withdrew back into Israel. That isn't, you know, how any terrorist organization is beaten. This is us preparing the battlefield for future operations.

SANCHEZ: Sure, an important distinction there that that you're making. I did want to get your thoughts on the situation in Gaza for civilians. Because I spoke earlier with the communications director at the UN Agency that's providing aid in Gaza. She reiterated that they are running out of fuel, that they urgently need it to keep people alive and I asked her if there was any communication with Hamas. Because the IDF has essentially told that UN organization to ask Hamas for fuel because Hamas, according to the IDF, has hundreds of thousands of liters of it. She says Hamas has not given them anything. If they can't get the fuel, that the. IDF alleges that Hamas has -- it seems likely they're not going to -- what then happens to those 600,000 innocent civilians the UN is helping?

CONRICUS: Yes, it is a horrible situation for these civilians to be in and I feel for them and I wouldn't want to be in their place. However, they are the responsibility of the governing authority in Gaza and that is Hamas, full stop. Not our responsibility. And if Hamas cannot find it within themselves to allocate fuel in order to keep hospitals running and to provide food and water for their very own population then that's something that needs to be dealt with them. It is not our responsibility in any way, since there is fuel in the Gaza Strip and it is in the hands of the entity that controls it and it is their agency and prerogative what to do with it. And they should provide fuel, food, water and everything else to the people under their responsibility.

And I think that, you know, the messaging of so many humanitarian organizations, which I'm sure are guided by the love of civilians and the want to do good. The messaging has been off from the beginning. Instead of saying, you know, back on the 16th of October in 10 -- in 24 hours, we're going to run out of fuel, which the World Health Organization said and tweeted. And now we're ten days after and they're they still have obviously fuel and food.

The whole line of messaging should be, we are humanitarians inside Gaza, and we need the government of Hamas to step up. Reprioritize civilians ahead of their military activities and provide fuel and water and food to civilians. Not trying to blame Israel. Not to look at the world and not to cry wolf to the international community. But to tell those who are responsible for the war and who have been governing the Gaza Strip for almost 20 years. And that's Hamas. Nobody else.

SANCHEZ: The counterclaim from those humanitarian organizations is that they've been reduced to rationing those supplies. So they are running out and it's getting precarious for them. And Jonathan quickly before we go, I wanted to give you an opportunity if you had a message to that Al Jazeera journalist who lost twelve members of his family in Gaza, including his grandchild. They had evacuated to a refugee camp in the southern part of Gaza that they thought would be safe. Do you have a message for that journalist?

CONRICUS: Yes, my message to anybody who is not a combatant and not part of Hamas, you are not the target.

[15:40:19]

The IDF will not target you or your families, and if anything has happened that was caused by the IDF, it is regrettable. It is the unfortunate circumstances that have brought this. We do not target civilians and that if their family died as a result of an IDF strike -- which is something that we have not yet established -- but if that is the case, that is sad and regrettable, and it's definitely not something that we are trying to do.

Jonathan Conricus, we have to leave the conversation there. Thank you again for your time.

CONRICUS: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

Just moments from now we're expecting an update from a hospital in Maine after the two mass shootings there last night. We're following that and the intense manhunt for the suspect believed to be responsible. Stay with us. We'll be right back.

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JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, John, Berman here in Lewiston, Maine. And the breaking news is we just learned the Coast Guard is now involved in the search for mass shooting suspect Robert Card. They're searching from the air and in the water. Remember Card's car was found near a boat launch about 10 minutes from where I'm standing, which is one of the shooting sites. His car was found right next to the Androscoggin River, so the Coast Guard now involved with the search.

Residents here in Lewiston and nearby Lisbon and Bowden, they are being advised to shelter in place. That shelter in place order extended. People been told to secure their homes and their cars.

With me now is Pastor Todd Little, with the First United Pentecostal Church here in Lewiston. Pastor, thank you so much for being with us. First, how and you and your family and your congregation, how are you all doing tonight?

TODD LITTLE, PASTOR, FIRST UNITED PENTECOSTAL CHURCH: Hello, thank you for checking on us and having us on today. Our church family and our family is basically fine. It's obviously been a quite a tragic event for our community and we continue to reach out to. Our congregants and help to help them through this struggle that they're -- that they're facing and their emotions and fear. BERMAN: And I do understand, I know your congregation is not far from

where I'm standing, which is the bar, and that people were gathered, you know, at the church last night. What was going on?

LITTLE: Last night we had our midweek Bible study. There was probably about 65 of us there and it was -- we heard several sirens and stuff throughout the course of the hour that we were there. And at the conclusion of our service we realized that there were some things going on That we need to shelter in place. That was a very --

BERMAN: Something I'm sure --

LITTLE: -- challenging time. We --

BERMAN: I can't imagine it's anything you'd ever thought would happen.

LITTLE: No, Sir.

BERMAN Pastor, tell me about Lewiston. And you know, yes, I'm from New England. Lewiston I think is one of the hidden gems of Maine. This old, you know, working class, yet beautiful place with really interesting people. Talk to me about the community.

LITTLE: We have a great community. It's a strong community. It's a very diverse community and it is -- I do believe it is a gem. And the great thing about this community is that they are strong, they are resilient and we will bind together. And get through this together.

BERMAN: Right now, that means sheltering in place. There's this shelter in place order for Lewiston and for Bowden and for Lisbon. What's that like for you and the church, as everyone here is being told, to secure your home, secure your cars.

LITTLE: Yes, that's -- it's not a fun experience and I think it brings a continued sense of apprehension in the lives of many people. For some it's an inconvenience to be, you know, stuck in your house again. But for others this is -- as this drags on, I've sensed a real apprehension in some people's lives and, you know, worried about what happens. You know, it's OK now, but it's light. But in a few hours, it's going to be dark and this this man is still on the loose.

BERMAN: It's a good -- it's a good point. About 90 minutes left of light here, a lot of apprehension about what will happen when the night time does come. Pastor Todd Little, we appreciate you being with us. We are thinking about you. We are thinking about your congregation. Please, you know, stay safe tonight.

LITTLE: Thank you so much.

BERMAN: All right, we are following the breaking news here out of Lewiston, Maine. 18 people killed here in two separate shootings. A suspect on the run, the manhunt intensifying. We'll be right back.

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SANCHEZ: This just into CNN. U.S. defense officials releasing this video -- take a look. This is a Chinese fighter jet coming within 10 feet of a U.S. B-52 bomber that was flying over the South China Sea. CNN's Natasha Bertrand is at the Pentagon for us. So, Natasha, what more are you hearing from officials on this?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Well, Boris, this was a really close call and it's something that U.S. defense officials say is happening with increasing regularity over the South China Sea as Chinese pilots take what they have called aggressive and coercive maneuvers against U.S. aircraft that are flying in international airspace in that area.

And in a statement, Indo-Pacific Command, they said that this particular jet was flying with uncontrolled excessive speed in front of and within 10 feet of the B-52 bomber, putting both aircraft in danger of collision. It was an extremely close call.

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To put it in perspective, the U.S. military considers intercepts like these to be dangerous when they're within 50 or 100 feet of the U.S. aircraft, so 10 feet is very close indeed.

And so, this comes really on the heels of the U.S. military saying that this is becoming increasingly frequent. The U.S. -- the Chinese military, has increasingly intercepted U.S. aircraft, over 180 incidents that they have seen since 2022. And according to the senior official in charge of security for Indo-Pacom. He said that it is a centralized and concerted campaign to perform these risky behaviors in order to coerce a change in lawful U.S. operational activity.

So essentially, the U.S. military is saying here, the reason the Chinese pilots do this is to intimidate the U.S. and try to get them out of that airspace. So clearly a big concern here because the risk of collision and accidental escalation is just so high -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, 10 feet. That is dangerous. Natasha Bertrand, thanks so much for the reporting.

Hey, stay with CNN for all the breaking news. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts after a quick break. Thanks for being with us.