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CNN International: Israel: More than 200 Targets in Gaza Hit Overnight; Hamas Threatens to Kill Hostages as Israel Pummels Gaza; Israel Halting Supply of Water, Electricity and Food to Gaza; EU Backtracks on Palestinian Air Suspension. Aired 4:00-4:30a ET

Aired October 10, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Bianca Nobilo.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Max Foster joining you live from London. Israel warning its punishing strikes against Hamas at its strongholds in Gaza are just the beginning as it ratchets up its response to the militant group's unprecedented attack.

NOBILO: Israeli air strikes have been pounding Gaza and overnight, the military says more than 200 targets were hit. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is promising Israel will go after Hamas, quote, like never before, saying their horrendous acts have not been seen since the time of ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: The savage attacks that Hamas perpetrated against innocent Israelis are mind boggling. Slaughtering families in their homes. Massacring hundreds of young people at an outdoor festival. Kidnapping scores of women, children and elderly, even Holocaust survivors. Hamas terrorists bound, burned and executed children. They are savages. Hamas is ISIS. And just as the forces of civilizations united to defeat ISIS, the forces of civilization must support Israel in defeating Hamas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: Rockets are also being launched from Gaza as Hamas threatens to begin killing civilian hostages and broadcasting it if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning.

FOSTER: All this is Israel says it's adding 10s of thousands of additional troops along the border with Lebanon. Let's get the latest information then from the Israeli Defense Forces joining me now from Tel Aviv. He's IDF spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner. Thank you so much for joining us, Mr. Lerner. Can you just take us through what your focus is today?

LT. COL. PETER LERNER, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES SPOKESPERSON: Thank you, Max. Good morning. Here's what we know. The IDF is currently conducting air strikes against Hamas targets. It's a response to the massacre that it placed four days ago, and we are still counting the casualties and fatalities. The strikes are being conducted against infrastructure, against the Hamas command and control positions against their staging grounds, and we are making sure that they cannot repeat attacks in towards Israel.

On the defensive side, we are making sure that those breaches, the 20 or so breaches along the perimeter of Gaza, are no longer able to be breached and our forces are very strong on the ground, in order to make sure that this attack, this most devastating attack, cannot be broadened beyond what they've already completed. The IDF is currently operating in order to safeguard the civilians of the State of Israel.

NOBILO: What is your response to threats from Hamas to kill and broadcast the deaths of hostages? And how is that impacting your strategy going forward?

LERNER: Thanks, Bianca. You know Hamas have made a decision to go to war with Israel and they will bear the consequences. This is not something that is acceptable to us, and we need to be very, very clear in our messages. The situation of killing Israelis is unacceptable. 900 Israelis, more than 900 Israelis have been butchered, murdered in Israel and that's something that we will not accept. We will fight Hamas and we will defeat Hamas.

FOSTER: In terms of the ground offensive that, you know, there's not much speculation about. I know you can't -- you probably don't want to give away the sort of important intelligence around that, but having hostages within Gaza, how does that change any plans you might have to go in? Does it make you more wary to go in, or does it change the strategy in any way?

LERNER: So, we are currently getting -- preparing ourselves for what may come. There may be a need for a ground offensive -- ground offensive as you highlighted. And we can't rule that out at the moment. We need to be very, very clear on our messages and on our targets against Hamas. Hamas cannot use their territory of the Gaza Strip or the poor people of Gaza as a staging ground to massacre Israelis. That is unacceptable. The civilians being held hostage, the Israeli women, children, elderly that are being held hostage are the responsible -- responsibility of Hamas. They need to set them free. They need to bring them to Israel immediately. They are going to bear the consequences of the IDF military force.

[04:05:00]

FOSTER: And can we just ask you about what's going on, on the Lebanese border because you've got this other front now forming, haven't you?

LERNER: So we are sending clear messages to Hezbollah that they don't want to get involved in what's going on, on the ground. Unfortunately, we've had some skirmishes and fatalities on our side, but every -- we are prepared on the border. We are prepared at sea. We are prepared in the air to defeat any enemy that tries to upset this -- the already very fragile situation on the ground. Hezbollah is watching closely of what's going on in Gaza and they would be very wise to stay out of this.

FOSTER: And a word, if I could, on the siege. You know, it's very shocking to people around the world to hear that two million people are losing access to water and food, even medicine. Just explain your thinking on that. And what does happen when lots of civilians are affected?

LERNER: Max, what is really shocking is that hundreds of terrorists stormed into Israel and butchered hundreds of Israelis. That is something that cannot be maintained. Hamas chose this fight. They will bear the consequences. They cannot expect, as the ruling government of the Gaza Strip, to butcher Israelis and have the flow of water, electricity from Israel. That is ridiculous. Nobody would expect anybody to supply these goods. Hamas have to bear the consequences of their actions. They are parading Israelis -- Israeli women in the streets. They are showing videos of elderly people as they humiliate them in the streets of Gaza. Do you expect us to feed them? No, Hamas needs to bear the consequences of their actions and they will.

NOBILO: Finally, to you, Sir. What is your reaction when you see footage from around the world of protests or rallies in support of the Palestinian cause asking for support to Israel to be dropped. We've seen it even in cities like London. What would you say to those people?

LERNER: I would say that now is the time to be on the right side of history. We've seen a lot of support from around the world. In Israel, we've seen buildings across the world being lit up in the colors of blue and white. We've seen the leaders of the world are standing on the right side of history with the people of Israel that were butchered in their homes. Those minority fringe elements should be ashamed of themselves. When people are butchered in their homes, there is no justice -- justification for those actions.

That is where -- what I say. And I would really like to point out that, you know, when we are asked why are we doing this and what -- there can be no justification for butchering families in their bedrooms. Imagine going to sleep and waking up at 7:00 in the morning and a terrorist standing over you with a gun, with an AK47 and splitting your family into different rooms in the house and executing a brother or a sister. That is something that we cannot accept as moral people, as independent people and anybody who is identifying with those terrorists was with these abominations is on the wrong side of history.

NOBILO: Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner, thank you very much for joining us this morning.

LERNER: Thank you.

NOBILO: We're starting to see some of the damage from Israel's bombardment. Hamas officials say two journalists in Gaza have been killed in an Israeli air strike. Video, which some viewers may find disturbing, has been released, and it shows one of the journalists on a stretcher, clearly wearing a bulletproof vest labeled press. According to the Hamas controlled government media office, the reporters were covering the evacuation of a residential building in Gaza.

And joining us now here in London is journalist Elliot Gotkine. Elliot, what's your response to that interview we just heard? Did anything stand out? Has anything shifted in terms of the rhetoric that we've been hearing?

ELLIOT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Not really, to be perfectly honest. Clearly, they're not going to give us any tactics or any insight as to if and when a ground incursion -- a ground invasion by Israel is going to happen. He said, you know, they are preparing for what may come and the line up until now has been, you know, all options are on the table. I think it would be probably still quite surprising if a ground invasion doesn't happen.

But of course, there are these complications, as we've discussed. At the best of times in terms of Hamas knows the streets better than Israeli soldiers. They can put booby traps. They will put booby traps, improvised explosive devices and the like. And there is always the danger of Israeli soldiers not just being killed, but also, being taken prisoner by the militants as well.

And of course, the added complication that there are already, you know, civilian hostages in Gaza and you know, dozens and dozens of them, probably more than 100 of them, which clearly complicates matters.

Now we heard from Israel's own envoy to the UN just last night saying that this will not prevent Israel from doing what it has to do.

[04:10:00]

But I think overall, you know Peter Lerner there, reiterating the kind of lines that we've heard so far. And in terms of the blockade, the siege of Gaza, which was announced by the Defense Minister yesterday, no food, no fuel, no water, no electricity going into the Gaza Strip. Peter Lerner reports to that was, do you expect us to feed them after what they've done, killing more than 900 Israelis?

FOSTER: The challenge there, obviously in terms of optics is you know people may sympathize with that when it comes to Hamas, but there are a lot of people in Gaza that are nothing to do with Hamas.

GOTKINE: Right, and I think Peter Lerner's line there, which is the same as you would expect as the Israeli Government, is that anything that happens now inside the Gaza Strip, anything that happens to whether it's the militants or the civilian population is on the head of the militants. They started this war --

FOSTER: They're responsible for that.

GOTKINE: Exactly. Not just responsible for the reaction of Israel, which we saw overnight, pummeling positions, it says, including command and control posts, weapons storage facilities located in mosques -- according to the IDF. Israel saying that all of what we are seeing happening in the Gaza Strip right now, is on the head of Hamas. Not just because they are the militants that launched this attack, this unprecedented attack on Israel, probably one of the darkest days, single days in Israel's history since it was founded in 1948. But also of course, Hamas controls the Gaza Strip. It is effectively the government of the Gaza Strip. So from Israel's perspective, the line that we just heard from Peter Lerner just there, is that this is all on the head of Hamas and any consequences, whether its people suffering because of a lack of food or a lack of water or any civilian casualties, are also on the head of Hamas.

FOSTER: OK. Elliott, thank you so much.

For too many Israeli families, the horror is far from over. Their loved ones are being held by Hamas, and a spokesperson for the terror group says it would begin killing civilian hostages and broadcast it if Israel targets people in Gaza without any warning. Anderson Cooper spoke with one suffering mother.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): When we met Maayan Zin, she was scrolling online, looking at hostage videos, searching for new pictures of her captured daughters.

COOPER: When did you learn that your daughters were missing?

COOPER (voice-over): My sister sent me a photo of my older daughter, Dafna, sitting on a mattress in Gaza, she says. She saved it on her phone. It was posted by Hamas. The writing in Arabic says, dress her in prayer clothes. It's better.

I thought at first that it was some kind of Photoshop the Arabs did, Maayan tells me. I didn't think such a thing could be possible.

COOPER: You didn't believe it?

MAAYAN ZIN, DAUGHTERS KIDNAPPED BY HAMAS: No. My daughter? No.

COPPER: How does she look to you here?

ZIN: Afraid. Shocked.

COPPER (voice-over): Maayan was shocked when 30-minute Hamas video live streamed on Facebook. Her former husband, Noam, has a leg wound and is taken away.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I know he is here, I have (INAUDIBLE).

(Speaking Foreign Language)

COPPER (voice-over): Armed gunman questioned his partner Dikla, her son Tomer and Maayan's two terrified daughters.

They're my whole life, those girls, she says. They're everything I wanted all my life. This is my existence to be a mother. It's all I wanted. I didn't want to be rich. I didn't want to be married. I didn't want anything. I wanted to be a mom.

To feel close to her daughter, she wears a tie-dyed dress Dafna made for her. Her coffee mug was a gift from Ella.

ZIN: I love you.

COPPER (voice-over): Maayan has given DNA samples to authorities, but says she's heard nothing since then. She's desperate and just wants her daughters and all the hostages returned.

I hope my daughters are watching this and I'm sending them a hug, she says. I believe everyone will return and for Noam and Dikla to know that we're here, the whole family together, supporting each other, cooperating and working together to get them back.

Anderson Cooper, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: Still to come, Israel's Prime Minister says recent attacks on Hamas strongholds are just the beginning. Details of the devastating impact on civilians in Gaza.

FOSTER: Plus, demonstrators convene on major cities worldwide to protest both sides in the Israeli Palestinian conflict.

[04:15:02]

FOSTER: The skyline of Gaza this morning, you can see some smoke there on the top right. That was an explosion more central to the picture just a few minutes ago. The IDF telling us earlier in the program, their focus today is on Hamas infrastructure within Gaza. They're staging grounds trying to prevent them from ever doing again what they did obviously on Saturday, which was you know, fire off those rockets from various positions across Gaza. And the IDF telling us that they're focusing on taking all of those out today whilst the siege of that area continues.

NOBILO: As the United Nations says that emergency shelters in Gaza are at 90 percent capacity right now, with more than 137,000 people taking cover from Israeli attacks. Israel's Defense Minister has given the order for a complete siege of the region. That means cutting off all utilities and aid to Gaza.

CNN's Ben Wedeman has more on what Palestinians there are enduring. And of course, we have to warn you that some of the images you're about to see are graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[04:20:00]

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Moments after an Israeli airstrike on Gaza's Jabalia refugee camp, desperate calls for help, the dead, the dying and the injured covered in dust and blood. Israel's wrath is now unleashed upon Gaza.

The Israelis say, Ahmed Shamalakh, hit the building without warning. They didn't ask us to evacuate. They didn't say anything. Suddenly we heard the airstrike and we ran to the building and found it had completely collapsed.

Around 75,000 people in Gaza have already been displaced, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency, which deals with Palestinian refugees.

In this cramped strip of land along the Mediterranean, two million Palestinians are now in the crosshairs of an enemy bent on revenge for Hamas' surprise attack, which left hundreds of Israelis dead and thousands wounded, and dozens now in Hamas captivity.

By evening, the death toll in Gaza was approaching 700, with almost 4,000 wounded, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Monday evening, the spokesman for Hamas issued a grim warning. They'll start executing their civilian hostages and broadcasting those executions, if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning.

Gaza and Israel have gone to war many times before since Hamas took control. This will not be yet another brief outbreak of attack and counterattack before a return to the status quo. Israel is massing troops and armor on the outskirts of Gaza, preparing in all likelihood for a ground invasion on a scale not seen before.

And now Israel's Defense Minister, Yoav Galant, has ordered what he called a complete siege of Gaza, cutting off all food, fuel and electricity.

That in a place where, according to the World Food Program, 63 percent of the population was food insecure before this war began.

So much has happened since Saturday morning in Israel and Gaza, and it's only the beginning.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: The European Union says aid payments for Palestinians will not be suspended following comments from one of its officials that funds will be halted. However, the bloc says it's launching an urgent review of the assistance being sent to Palestinians.

CNN's Nada Bashir following those developments for us. A bit of a odd comment yesterday, so it's suggesting that aid would be cut off. But the bigger debate seems to be how to get aid in to help civilians without it going to Hamas.

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Absolutely. I mean this is crucial. And when we're talking about that EU aid package to Palestinians, it is not just Palestinians in Gaza, which is of course under the leadership of Hamas. But this is aid going to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank in East Jerusalem, in camps in neighboring countries as well. This is a significant aid package and it provides support in terms of food, in terms of education, security, in terms of water as well.

So this is crucial and when we talk about the situation in Gaza, of course, particularly now following the announcement by Israel's Defense Minister that that Israel will be laying a complete siege on Gaza. That means no food, no electricity, no fuel getting into Gaza. This is a very small, very busy enclave, which has been under blockade since 2007. And of course that humanitarian impact will be dire. And we've heard that warning from the United Nations. Take a listen to this -- these remarks from the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONIO GUTERRES, UN SECRETARY-GENERAL: I'm deeply distressed by today's announcement that Israel will initiate a complete seizure of the Gaza Strip. Nothing allowed in, no electricity, food or fuel. The military situation in Gaza was extremely dire before these hostilities. Now it will only deteriorate exponentially.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASHIR: Now of course, we have heard from European Union officials. They have said that that humanitarian aid for Palestinians will not be suspended, that aid will continue so long as Palestinians are in need of that aid. But of course, as you mentioned, there is going to be a review of that aid package. But of course, there is also concern about how far this situation could deteriorate, particularly as we are anticipating, of course, an escalation in the violence centered on Gaza and we are anticipating that we will see more air strikes being launched by the IDF on Gaza.

And this is a very difficult, very complex situation. Because when we talk about these air strikes on Gaza, the IDF, the Israel Defense Forces, says they are targeting Hamas targets.

[04:25:00]

But of course, as we know, this is a small enclave that has been under blockade. There is nowhere for many of these Palestinians to turn. The UN's refugee agency for Palestinians has said that there are some 180,000 Palestinians in Gaza that have already been displaced following this latest escalation of violence. Many are taking shelters -- shelter in a UN schools. But many of these UN schools are now at capacity.

And as we have seen in the past, and in fact, as we saw yesterday, these strikes, I mean, it's almost impossible for these strikes to avoid civilian casualties. We saw yesterday another strike by the IDF, which has made impact at the Al-Shati and Jabalia refugee camps in Gaza. We've heard from local officials saying that this has impacted medical facilities as well.

So it is going to have a significant civilian impact and the humanitarian situation is only going to deteriorate -- as you heard there from the UN Secretary-General.

NOBILO: Escalation at this stage appears inevitable because of the discussions about a potential ground incursion. The fact the hostages still remain. Where -- what is the status of the regional players that would be able to exert pressure here? There must be urgent discussions going on behind the scenes from Qatar, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey. What do we know?

BASHIR: Absolutely. I mean, this is a huge concern and when we talk about the hostage situation in Gaza, it is dire. We heard those warnings yesterday from Hamas, saying that if air strikes continue without warning on civilian areas in Gaza, they will begin executing Israeli citizens held hostage in Gaza. So this is a matter that is being taken extremely seriously by international partners, particularly in the region.

Now we have learned, according to -- we've learned from U.S. officials as well as another source familiar with the matter, that Qatar has been in talks with Hamas leaders trying to mediate some sort of resolution when it comes to these hostages that are being held. The U.S., for its part, has been coordinating with leaders in Qatar as they continue with this mediation effort. Sources have told us that Qatar's Prime Minister met with Hamas leaders on Sunday and that things appear to be moving very, very quickly.

But of course, no clear indication of where those talks stand at this stage. We have heard from U.S. defense officials who have said that they are offering support to Israel when it comes to efforts to rescue those held captive by Hamas in Gaza. That support, according to defense sources and officials, does not mean U.S. boots on the ground, but this will take the form of reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence support from the U.S.

Now at this stage, the Israel Defense Forces haven't been able to give an exact figure as to how many Israeli citizens are currently being held hostage within Gaza. But we've heard from Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations, who says figure is somewhere between 100 and 150. So this is, of course, a huge, huge focus for Israel and its allies at this current point in time.

NOBILO: Nada Bashir, thank you.

Police in London arrested three protesters involved in demonstrations in the heart of the city Monday night. Both pro-Palestinian and pro- Israeli protesters, part officers, say the arrests were for an assault on an emergency worker, racially motivated criminal damage and possession of an offensive weapon.

In Sydney, Australia, hundreds marched in a pro-Palestinian demonstration, while the famous Opera House there is lit up in blue and white in support of Israel. People carried Palestinian flags, wearing black, white, red and green and carrying banners with the message, free Palestine.

FOSTER: In New York City, a large turn out of a prayer service for Israel, this vigil was held in Brooklyn on Monday night to honor the victims of the Hamas attacks. New York Mayor Eric Adams was there, and he expressed his support for the country, saying it has the right to defend itself. He called the attacks a form of anger and anti-Semitism at the highest level.

NOBILO: The White House was lit up in the colors of the Israeli flag on Monday to show solidarity with the country. U.S. officials say they're also trying to expedite military assistance to Israel as it responds to Hamas's unprecedented attacks. CNN's Kayla Tausche has more now from the. White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The White House illuminated in blue and white in solidarity with Israel, and President Biden set to deliver remarks to the American people on the evolving situation there, as the White House works around the clock to assess the impact on the ground and on American families and communities. Eleven Americans confirmed among the hundreds killed in violence in recent days, and the White House also working to confirm how many, if any Americans are among the hostages taken by Hamas.

[04:30:00]

Today, a rare and remarkable joint statement from the Quint allies, the U.S., the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy, saying that they have unequivocal condemnation for Hamas, and saying that their countries will offer support to Israel as it seeks to defend itself.

To that end, the National Security Council here in the U.S. telling reporters that the U.S. has existing authority and funding to assist Israel and its ability to defend itself, but that the U.S. would go back to Congress to ask for more if needed.

NSC Spokesman John Kirby also saying it is not the U.S.'s intention to put American boots on the ground, and also saying that there is so far no smoking gun in his words to directly tie Iran to these attacks.

All that to say, it is a fluid and evolving situation, and the White House acknowledges that new information is being obtained every single minute.

Kayla Tausche, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)