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Israeli Military Claims Responsibility For Stike In Beirut Suburbs. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired July 30, 2024 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The other thing that's been happening in Beirut is there have been a lot of foreign governments who are emptying out their embassies and asking their citizens to return and to leave the area because they're concerned about this.

So again, the fact if this stays limited and we're in the early hours of this, that that's an important dynamic. It won't create that regional conflict.

As we said, if they, in fact, have and can identify a target that they killed that was responsible for that massive artillery strike that killed so many in Israel.

Then again, this shows the -- literally, the constraint of the Israeli Defense Forces in this area, anyway, and doesn't widen the conflict.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: General, please standby.

We want to bring in David Sanger, a "New York Times" correspondent, who covers international affairs as well as the White House, into the conversation.

David, your response to this apparent strike by the IDF in Beirut?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it sounds to me like General Hertling's got this just right if this is the response. In other words, if this is not the leading edge of something else.

Yes, I think it's closer to what the United States was urging, a targeted attack, presumably, on commanders who we're responsible, in Israel's view, for that horrific attack on the playground and soccer field that resulted in the deaths of those children.

If it is the beginning of something larger, then we're into something different. We've just seen a tweet on X from the defense minister of Israel, Defense Minister Gallant, saying that Hezbollah had crossed a red line. But he didn't give any suggestion that there is a larger response underway.

So the dynamic we have seen is that neither Hezbollah nor the Israelis feel prepared this moment, or the Iranians for that matter, to get into a wider conflict, as General Hertling already noted.

Israel's forces are stretched quite thin. Hezbollah doesn't want to miscalculate here and result in a general war in Lebanon.

And the Iranians have shown time and again that while they are willing to arm and strike out, they don't want to be in a general war either. Thus, their -- their pull back in April.

So if this is it, and if we don't see very widespread civilian casualties, then I would say the administration got what it was seeking from the Israelis.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: It's a bit of this deadly dance where both sides really seem to know the steps here.

But I wonder, David, as you we're looking for clues here that Israel, at some point, may be at risk of a miscalculation, what it is that you look for?

SANGER: So they're both at risk of miscalculation here. So on the Israeli side, if there we're widespread civilian casualties, even if they said that they were going after a Hezbollah commander unit, you'd have the same kind of issues that we've seen in Gaza where they said they we're were going after Hamas commanders, but we've repeatedly seen major -- major troubles.

Not clear at all at this point how widespread the damage is. That's just going to take time to figure out.

If Hezbollah, right, reacts and attacks again in northern Israel and has civilian casualties, that, too, could be a trigger. But the hope is here that both sides step back.

SANCHEZ: David Sanger, please stand by.

We're continuing to follow this breaking news on CNN. The Israeli military carrying out what they say is a targeted strike on a Hezbollah military commander in southern Beirut. We're going to keep an eye on this story and get you the latest as we get it.

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Stay with CNN.

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SANCHEZ: We're continuing to follow breaking news into CNN. And we actually have our first images of the aftermath from what the Israeli military is describing as a targeted strike in southern Beirut.

The IDF says that the attack was on a Hezbollah commander that they say is responsible for this weekend's deadly rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that apparently killed 12 children.

KEILAR: Lebanese state media saying that this strike was conducted by drone that fired three missiles. SANCHEZ: And CNN global affairs correspondent, Matthew Chance, is joining us now.

Matthew, your reaction to this news?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, obviously it's a huge escalation in this ongoing crisis and this ongoing conflict that's been brewing between Israel and Lebanon, or at least the Hezbollah factions and the other militant groups inside -- inside Lebanon.

And obviously, there have been multiple airstrikes that have taken place from the Israelis into that -- deep into Lebanese territory since the attack in Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which killed 12 children and teenagers at the weekend.

But this is an escalation of that. This is an attack on what looks like a residential suburb of southern Beirut, the Lebanese capital. And that could provoke some sort of response.

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So I think that's the big concern at the moment, you know, what will be the response of the Lebanese authorities or Hezbollah, more importantly, to this attack. And obviously, you can see those images. Very dramatic.

It's not clear what casualties there are at this point in that area of southern Beirut. But look at that devastation. I mean, it's -- it's pretty -- pretty intense.

And so I wouldn't be surprised if we start seeing some casualty figures coming out of there in the minutes and in the -- in the hours ahead.

Now whether this represents a start of a broader conflict that Israel is undertaking in Lebanon, I think that's not clear at that point -- at this point.

Certainly, there is strong pressure inside Israel, from hardliners, for example, who want to go hard against Hezbollah to remove it as a threat from Israel's northern border.

And there's also pressure for -- politically in Israel. I mean, remember, a lot of the Israeli communities in northern Israel have been evacuated. People have left their homes because of the incessant threat of rocket attacks from southern Lebanon.

And so there's a big political pressure, at some point, on the Israeli authorities to go in and to push back, potentially, Hezbollah from -- from those border -- border areas.

Whether this is the sort of turning point or not, I think we don't know yet. I think there's been a lot of pressure, as your previous guest was saying, on all sides to hold back. And of course, my sources inside Israel as well, inside the Israeli

military are saying the country is exhausted. Israel is exhausted. It's not ready necessarily at the moment for a full-scale assault on Lebanon.

But events in the Middle East do have a way of taking on a momentum of their own.

KEILAR: Yes, that's what I was going to ask, are Israelis, writ large, ready for the commitment that this kind of undertaking would be. Because it would be very large considering the capabilities of Hezbollah.

But as we're -- I wonder what questions you have at this point, Matthew. You mentioned, you see the destruction. We want to understand what the casualties are.

But just take us through the questions you have. This is a very urban area. A lot of people in close proximity. What -- what don't we know at this point?

CHANCE: Well, I mean, we don't know what -- what civilian casualties may have been -- may have been inflicted as a result of this destruction. Because what the Israeli military statement says, the IDF statement says is this was a targeted strike.

I've got the statement in front of me here. A strike on the commander, the Hezbollah commander responsible for the murder of the children in Majdal Shams that that rocket attack on the soccer pitch at the weekend in the Golan -- the Golan Heights. Also the killing of other Israeli civilians as well.

And so what the Israeli military are saying is that this was a very targeted strike on specifically the Hezbollah commander, who they hold responsible for the deaths of those 12 people from the Druze community inside northern Israel at the weekend.

The indications from the Israeli government and the authorities is that is that this is a specific, precise response to that. It doesn't necessarily indicate that this is the start of a broader campaign to push Hezbollah back from the border of northern Israel, in southern -- in southern Lebanon.

It may become that but, at the moment, that's not what the Israelis seem to be indicating.

SANCHEZ: Matthew, please standby.

We want to go to retired General Mark Hertling for his response, his view of these images, the first that we're getting of this IDF attack in Beirut.

What stands out to you about this -- this early video of the strike?

HERTLING: Yes, a couple of things. First of all, you can tell that this was not -- and I know you're your listeners and your viewers are going to think I'm crazy for saying this.

But this was not a large strike. This was -- this was a small weapon system launched from a drone, from what Israel says. And this is the kind of destruction you get from those kinds of kinetic operations which are targeted.

It looks like there's a lot of rubble around. People are walking through the area. I haven't seen what was hit yet, whether it was a car or a building. Windows are blown out. Glass is all over the place.

But this is probably a relatively small weapon that hit in this area, one of three as reported by the Israelis. This isn't a 500-pound bomb that was dropped or a to a 2,000-pound bomb.

It was dropped, however, in the southern part of the capital of Lebanon. This is an important part. And what Matthew was just talking about, I think it's important to note that most of the Israeli strikes have been going on in southern Lebanon, south of the Litani River, which is about 35 miles north of the Israeli border.

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It's the border area between Israel and Lebanon. Beirut is about 100 miles from the Israeli border, and it is the capital of Lebanon.

Lebanon is not Hezbollah. Hezbollah is a terrorist group that works inside of Lebanon. And to have a strike against the capital is not what Israeli -- what the Israelis want to do, but it's sending a signal.

What has been happening since October 7th, is -- is rockets have come out of Lebanon launched by Hezbollah, the terrorist group. They have mostly been coming from southern Lebanon.

And Israel has responded in kind to those attacks when they hear or when they get the feedback and the intelligence to go against the target. Going this far north -- this far north and hitting outside the capital is a different ballgame altogether.

And that's what I think a lot of people have been concerned about. Matthew is exactly right. Brianna just said it, too. The last two times that Israel went into Lebanon, it was a long war, years.

In fact, the 1982 war operation, Peace for Galilee, was -- took about 20 years to resolve, with Israel forces still in that area because of missiles coming out of -- missiles and artillery coming out of southern Lebanon.

So as we explain this conflict a little bit, you have a terrorist organization, Hezbollah, working inside of a country where the government is very different and really not supportive of that Hezbollah terrorist group.

But they can't do a whole lot about them because it is operating underground. So the strikes in southern Lebanon in the first nine months of this campaign are very different than the strike that just took place inside of Beirut.

KEILAR: Very interesting points.

General, if you could stand by for us.

And to the general's point, David Sanger, you know, Beirut has largely been spared. There was, of course, the attack in April on the Iranian consular access that targeted Revolutionary Guard from Iran and the Quds Force commanders.

But this isn't something -- even if this is considered a small strike -- we don't see the pancaking of buildings -- this is something that is really going to be seen by people in Beirut as something very significant.

SANGER: It definitely will. And as General Hertling suggested, attacking another country's capital is no small thing. It's also been done before and there's usually been a pretty big reaction, as you mentioned, about targeting the Iranian commanders earlier this year.

But in this case, that neighborhood where they have struck appears to be the area near where the Shura Council meets, which is the sort of governing council of Hezbollah.

The Israelis have said they had a specific commander in mind. I don't think they've named that commander. And we don't know whether that commander was killed, injured, or even there during the time of the strike.

But the pattern of destruction here seems to radiate the thought that this was a targeted strike, not a general one.

And you know, it's interesting, you wonder whether the Israelis are beginning to take on board the American criticisms, which we're in response to some of the strikes against Hamas down in Gaza about using large bombs in crowded neighborhoods.

That doesn't mean that there weren't civilian casualties here. I can't imagine that there weren't. But it was a much more targeted weapon. And we heard from the State Department just today that their biggest hope here is to avoid escalation.

So all a question now of how many we're killed and how Hamas -- how Hezbollah responds?

SANCHEZ: Yes, questions obviously still too early to answer.

David Sanger, please stay with us.

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We're going to take a quick break and we'll be right back with the latest news out of the Middle East, The IDF carrying out a targeted strike in Beirut.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KEILAR: We continue to follow breaking news coming to us out of the Middle East. Israel says -- and these are some live pictures out of Beirut.

Israel says it has launched a strike there in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, targeting a Hezbollah commander that it blames for a deadly attack on the Israeli occupied Golan Heights that killed 12 children.

SANCHEZ: Yes, Lebanese state media says the strike was conducted by drone, a drone that fired three missiles. Again, these are live images coming in. A lot of questions still to be answered, including the number of casualties killed in the incident.

Want to take you now live to Tel Aviv because CNN's Jeremy Diamond has been monitoring this situation.

Jeremy, what are you hearing from Israeli officials?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Israeli military was very quick to confirm that it had carried out this strike on the southern suburb of Beirut, a very significant strike, in part, because of the location, but also because of the target.

The Israeli military says that it targeted a senior commander who was responsible, they say, for that rocket attack on the Syrian Druze community of much Majdal Shams in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.

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That deadly strike over the weekend, killing 12 children, wounding several dozen others. And absolutely shaking that community. But also raising fears in the region of a potential escalation of this long- simmering conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

Whether or not this strike, given the nature of the deaths, given the fact that these we're civilians, and given the fact that these we're children, that this could potentially tilt the region into all-out war.

And we have been hearing from Israeli officials in the last several days. They have been vowing a very severe response, vowing to take out a very heavy blow on Hezbollah.

And now we know the nature of that strike as we learn that it has taken place in this southern suburb of the Lebanese capital, a Hezbollah stronghold at that.

Now, interestingly, the Israeli military is also saying that they have made no changes to what they call the Home Front Command Defensive Guidelines.

These are the types of guidelines that are issued to civilians to prepare them for the possibility of a military escalation, to prepare them to be able to get to a bomb shelter more quickly, to not hold large gatherings. So no changes there, which indicates that, at least for the moment,

the Israeli military, the Israeli governments don't seem to think that this will, at least immediately, trigger that all-out war, immediately trigger a significant escalation from Hezbollah.

But make no mistake, that possibility is certainly in the air tonight, as we now wait to see how Hezbollah will respond to this latest strike, as we wait to see the identity of this senior Hezbollah commander who was taken.

And also of how many other casualties may have resulted from this Israeli strike.

The Israeli defense minister, Yoav Gallant, making clear tonight that this strike was taken out because Hezbollah, in his words, "crossed the red line."

And so that is certainly the sentiment from the Israeli government tonight. It is why they carried out this strike.

And now the region is going to wait to see how Hezbollah will respond and whether or not we will see yet another escalation in this conflict.

KEILAR: All right, we'll be watching, too.

Jeremy, thank you so much.

We are going to be monitoring White House reaction to this.

And we do have some news coming from the Lebanese state news agency, NNA, saying that at least one has -- one person has died in this strike by Israel in Beirut.

At least one woman has died and several other people have been injured, including serious injuries in the IDF strike in the suburbs of Beirut.

We're looking to get more information and, obviously, as we look at these live pictures coming in from Lebanon. We'll be right back with more.

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