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CNNN International: Netanyahu Visits Israel Soldiers Near Gaza Border; Iran Warns of Far-Reaching Consequences if Israel Attacks Continues; Gazan Roads to Rafah Crossing Inoperable; More Than 700 Palestinian Children Killed in Gaza; IDF on Significant Ground Operations; Interview with IDF Spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus; Interview with W.H.O. Regional Emergency Director Dr. Richard Brennan; Hamas Claims Israeli Hostages Were Killed in Bombardment; Aid for Gaza Piles Up; Hezbollah Targets Israeli Positions; Interview with Retired U. S. Army Major and Madison Policy Forum Chair of Urban Warfare John Spencer; Foreign Nationals Unable to go Through Rafah Crossing; IDF and Hezbollah Trade Fire Near Israeli- Lebanese Border; Mourners Attend Funeral of Slain Journalist; The Weapons of Hamas; IDF: Increasing Readiness for the Next Stages of War; Jews Fear Rise in Antisemitism Amid Israel-Hamas Conflict; Fake Viral Video Tell False Story of War. Aired 11p-12a ET
Aired October 14, 2023 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[23:00:00]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome everyone. I'm Michael Holmes.
As we continue our breaking news coverage of Israel at war. And there are growing signs at this hour that thousands of Israeli troops are on the verge of launching a major ground operation into Gaza. After a week of airstrikes and artillery fire directed at Hamas in Gaza, and a hastily ordered evacuation of civilians from Gaza City, Israel now says it's ready to open a new phase in the war, including a possible ground incursion into the Gaza Strip. Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met soldiers on the front lines offering words of support, telling them to be prepared.
On Saturday, Iran warned of far-reaching consequences if Israel's attacks on Gaza don't stop. This, as the Iranian foreign minister met with a senior Hamas official for the first time since the fighting began. There is deep concern that Iran and its proxies might try to escalate the conflict, especially along Israel's northern border.
As a deterrent, the U. S. is sending a second carrier strike group to the Mediterranean. Military experts say, it is extremely rare for the U. S. to post two carrier groups to the same place, but said it underscores the seriousness the Biden administration places on the crisis.
Thousands of Palestinians have fled to southern Gaza since Israel issued an evacuation order early on Friday. But of course, not everyone can leave. Many say, there's nowhere to go and they fear they won't be able to return. Some hospitals in Gaza are refusing to evacuate, saying it's just too dangerous to be moving their patients. But for those who stay, the threat of continued Israeli airstrikes is very high, and the ground invasion too.
In the south, thousands of people have been stranded at the Rafah Crossing into Egypt. The Egyptian Foreign Minister says, the crossing with Gaza is open, but he says Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza side have made the roads there inoperable.
Meanwhile, aid trucks have begun arriving in Egypt, plenty of them, but they can't enter Gaza. One young Palestinian pleaded for the fighting to stop.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I want the war to end. Go back home. Learn and live like regular people. It's a tragedy. There's no water, no electricity, and I have no money. I'm standing here and hungry. Wondering, what's left? I want to go back home, learn and live like regular people. I'm not really living right now. I just look like I am.
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HOLMES: Salma Abdulaziz now with more on the plight of people in Gaza and what they're facing right now. A warning, her report does contain graphic and disturbing images.
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SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): This is what running for your life looks like in Gaza. An ambulance with a young girl and wounded woman inside, rocked by explosions as they attempt to flee. It is unclear what happened to the pair, but they're among the tens of thousands of people on the move after Israel's military called on nearly half of Gaza's population, some 1.1 million people to get south in a matter of hours.
But along the safe passages specified by the IDF, utter horror. You're looking at the carnage and chaos on Salah-al-Din Street, one of the designated evacuation routes. In the aftermath of explosions, families killed amid their belongings. CNN has geolocated this video and four other clips from the horrifying scene. The U.N. calls Israel's evacuation advisory impossible, and a violation of the rules of war. And Palestinian officials accuse the IDF of bombing civilians even as they fled.
Dozens of evacuees were killed or wounded by Israeli airstrikes, according to Hamas, CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment. The victims are flooding into Gaza's overwhelmed hospitals. And again, it's the youngest caught in the crossfire, nearly half of Gaza's population is children.
What did the children do to deserve this, this woman says. Did they fight you? Did they fire rockets? My niece and her whole family are dead, the only survivor is a two-year-old girl.
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The healthcare system is on the brink. A complete siege making it impossible to get aid into the enclave. And already, there's a shortage of everything, even space in the morgue.
Keeping the dead in ice cream trucks so the bodies don't rot, this doctor says. Gaza is in crisis. Gaza needs help.
For those still able to move south, this is one of the neighborhoods families are expected to flee towards, Khan Yunis, where Israeli airstrikes have wreaked havoc.
This is a genocide, not a war. It's genocide, this man says. And it's an attempt to force all Palestinians out of the Gaza Strip.
Finding refuge is proving dangerous and deadly. And for the many families desperate for shelter, the fear is there may be no safe places left.
Salma Abdulaziz, CNN, London.
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HOLMES: The United Nations is once again warning that the conflict is inflicting a heavy toll on children. UNICEF says, more than 700 children have been killed in Gaza, and more than 2,400 have been wounded. It says hospitals are, "Utterly overwhelmed" and to treat them and is urging that, "The killing of children must stop." It's also calling for the release of Israeli children being held hostage in Gaza as well.
The U. S. President Joe Biden is continuing his talks with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the Hamas attack. With another phone call this weekend, Mr. Biden also called attention to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza at a human rights event, Saturday night, as the Israeli-Hamas war enters a second week.
CNN's Priscilla Alvarez with more.
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PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: President Biden on Saturday spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, marking the fifth time the two leaders have talked since the attacks on Israel last Saturday. Now, in that discussion, the two talked about U. S. military support, as well as protecting innocent civilians as this conflict unfolds.
Now, in a second call, the president also spoke with Palestinian Authority President Abbas. In that call, they talked about humanitarian supplies reaching Gaza, which is facing water shortages and food shortages. Now the president also spoke in at a human rights campaign dinner. And in his remarks, he too talked about the terror attacks in Israel as well as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Take a listen.
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: A week ago, we saw hate manifest in another way in the worst massacred Jewish people since the holocaust. More than 1,300 innocent lives lost in Israel, including at least 27 Americans. Children and grandparents alike kidnapped, held hostage by Hamas. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza, innocent Palestinian families in the vast majority that have nothing to do with Hamas. They're being used as human shield.
ALVAREZ: Now, the focus for officials at the White House continues to be that this conflict not widen in the region, but they are sending a message of deterrence in the region as well and focusing their efforts too on bringing those Americans who are held hostage by Hamas at home.
Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, the White House.
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HOLMES: And IDF Spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus joins us now from Tel Aviv. Thanks for coming back, Colonel. Appreciate that. I wanted to ask you, because Hamas has been saying Israeli hostages are being killed in the bombardment. There are also reports the IDF found bodies of abducted Israelis. What do you know about those reports and what's your reaction to them?
LT. COL. JONATHAN CONRICUS, IDF SPOKESPERSON: Yes, good morning, and thank you for having me. I would say categorically that any piece of information that comes from Hamas or comes from the Gaza Strip, including the so-called health ministry, should, in my perspective, be treated with extreme caution. Whether it's about Israeli hostages or events that happened or have not happened with convoys of the Gazans trying to flee.
HOLMES: Did the IDF recover the bodies of Israelis who'd been taken, because that was reported in the region?
CONRICUS: No, we have not.
HOLMES: OK.
CONRICUS: I assume that you are referring to operations that we conducted a day and a half ago, where we launched a few raids in order to obtain information to shed light on the situation and basically identity of abductees or people held hostage. Those operations have ended. We did find some useful intelligence, but unfortunately, we did not recover bodies.
HOLMES: Oh, I appreciate you clearing that up. Now, Israel urged civilians to flee Gaza City, but of course, not everyone can leave. I mean, there's people in hospitals, there's the elderly, the infirm, those without access to transport and so on.
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What happens with them if this ground incursion does get underway, those who won't or can't move, what happens to them? CONRICUS: Well, one thing is that everybody should make an utmost effort to evacuate for their own safety. And if they can get help in doing so, then the authorities in Gaza and civil society should definitely help and provide that assistance. Second, of course, we will not target civilians. But it is our interest to not have civilians in an active combat zone, and that's why we have asked them to do so.
In any case, if they stay, we will, of course, take the available precautionary measures in order to minimize collateral damage and minimize the killing of civilians. But again, we must remember we are going to fight. If this will be a ground invasion, we are going to fight a ruthless enemy that has no problems using everything available civilians as human shields and using civilian infrastructure for military purposes. So, we have to plan according to that. But bottom line, we will take extreme -- we will take caution not to inflict damage to civilians.
HOLMES: And to that point, what will a ground battle, urban combat, building to building look like in a place like Gaza City? I've been there several times. It is a crowded, cramped, lots of alleyways and narrow streets and that where you can't maneuver tanks and so on. And how, how is that going to look and how does the presence of Israeli hostages complicate the mission?
CONRICUS: Yes, I remember your coverage from Gaza several times, and I agree. Extremely difficult for any modern military to fight in such a dense urban area. And to add to the complexity, if you compare Gaza to other cities where there's been fighting. What we have in Gaza is the subterranean dimension, and we know that Hamas has an elaborate network of tunnels, both for defensive and offensive purposes, which will for sure compound the complexity of fighting, and we are prepared for that.
Fighting will be slow. Advances will be slow and we will be cautious. But we are very determined to get to the Hamas terrorists that currently are hiding underneath their civilians in the tunnel system that they have. Our hostages are the responsibility of Hamas. They are most likely held underground in various locations. And, of course, it is a top priority for us to get in and get them out.
HOLMES: If Israel achieves what it wants, to go back in and break the back of Hamas, I mean, it's impractical to think that all of the militants, all of the leadership will be killed. Is it the Israeli plan to take Gaza City, run the operation, but then stay? Continue operations from there? Occupy the area for a period of time?
CONRICUS: I don't think so. And that's for our cabinet to say. Our current aim is, as you said, in good terms, to break their back, and as I would say in military terms, to totally dismantle their military capabilities.
HOLMES: We touched on this when we spoke 24 hours or so ago, Israel in -- has in previous conflicts said it would crush Hamas, destroy them. And yet they still perpetrated the horrors of the past week had that capability. Why would this time see them crushed? What's different from an IDF perspective?
CONRICUS: The main difference is that there was a clear directive on what needs to be done. And I think a widespread understanding in the military, and in government, and for that extent in Israeli society as well that this is an untenable situation that we cannot allow the day after this conflict a terrorist organization like Hamas to exist on our doorstep.
I think that is the foundational difference, and that is what we're going to execute. We will set the situation straight and it will be better for Israel. And in the long run, it will be better for Gazans as well.
HOLMES: IDF Spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, I do appreciate you making yourself available for the conversation. Thanks so much.
CONRICUS: Thank you.
HOLMES: All right. Well, humanitarian aid for Gaza pours in, but it ends up sitting near the border despite the dire situation inside the enclave. Still ahead, we'll explain why the much-needed aid isn't getting in.
Also, Hezbollah targets several Israeli positions at the Lebanon- Israel border. What does that mean for the ongoing fight? All of that and more when we come back.
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HOLMES: All right. Let's get you up to speed with the latest developments in the Israel-Hamas war. Desperately needed humanitarian aid is piling up in Egypt, unable to get across the border into Gaza. An Egyptian TV channel showed planes from multiple countries bringing aid in on Saturday, but nothing is currently going through the main Rafah Border Crossing from Egypt, which is also preventing foreign citizens from leaving.
An Egyptian TV station says, Cairo doesn't want the crossing opened only to foreign nationals, but also for aid to go in the other way. Egypt's foreign minister told CNN earlier, the problem is on the Palestinian's side of the gate.
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SAMEH SHOUKRY, EGYPTIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: It's been subject to aerial bombardment, thereby on the Gaza side the roads are not in a state that can receive the transit of vehicles and as well is that the -- those operating the Gazan side. Be it that it is necessary if third nationals are come out so that humanitarian goods could come in. And we've not been able to get any authorization to send humanitarian supplies to relieve the pressures of -- on the Palestinians of Gaza up to now.
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HOLMES: Israel's opposition leader echoed that sentiment earlier. Yair Lapid told CNN that Hamas is to blame for the situation at the Rafah Border Crossing, and says, the group is using Palestinian civilians for their own protection.
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YAIR LAPID, LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION IN ISRAEL: We're working with the United States, President Biden has said so, and with the U.N. trying to make a safe passage for the people of Southern Gaza. And the only body that prevents this or try to prevent it is Hamas because they're using their own children as human shield because this is part of their propaganda because they want this to be reported in CNN.
So, now, Hamas knows how to work and make sure that those people will be moved to the southern part of Gaza. They know we're coming in, so they're trying to use their own people as human shield.
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HOLMES: All right. Elliott Gotkine is covering all developments for us from London. Good to see you, Elliot. Israel preparing for what it says is the next stage of this war. Bring us up to date on development.
ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Very much so. Israel, Michael saying that it is waiting to launch a significant military operation, in its words. Israeli just waiting for civilians to get out of harm's way. Of course, we saw that evacuation order from Israel on Friday, asking Gazans, advising Gazans, especially those in Gaza City in the northern part of the strip to move south to get out of harm's way, and to minimize the loss of civilian life. But even then, we've seen, of course, those -- that footage and reports of people moving south being caught in the crossfire and more civilians losing their lives.
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And so, now, the death toll in the Gaza Strip, more than 2,000, according to the ministry of health there. Of course, the ministries and the government there are run by Hamas. And in Israel, of course, we now watch just a week and a day after that devastating and brutal terrorist attack from Hamas which has killed more than 1,300 people.
But all eyes now on this ground invasion. And it really is just a matter of when rather than if. Although very complicated situation as the IDF Spokesman Jonathan Conricus was just outlining, not just because there are more than 100 hostages being held by Hamas that the organization abducted last week, but also because Hamas knows that Israel is coming. It will be expecting Israel. It will be welcoming Israeli troops to a degree because it will give them more opportunity to kill Israeli soldiers and also to abduct them.
Of course, the other complication is the civilian population in Gaza and the deteriorating humanitarian situation. And there's also a danger for escalation in the north. Now, according to Israel, the rocket fire we've seen from Southern Lebanon and also from Syria hasn't yet met in its words, the threshold of escalation. But clearly there's a big concern there that that could open up another front. And that, of course, is one reason why the U.S. has sent another warship to the Eastern Mediterranean to deter such an escalation.
And all the while, we're seeing violence rising in the West Bank as well. The Israeli occupied West Bank, where more than 50 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Ministry of Health there. And then of course, there's the court of public opinion. And you can see, this has been steadily shifting during the week from rock solid support of Israel in for the most part to, you know, growing concern about the civilian casualties rising in the Gaza Strip.
And I suppose Israel will be bracing itself for the inevitable condemnations that are going to start coming through, whether it's from the United Nations or other organizations too, Michael.
HOLMES: Yes. Elliott, good to see you. Elliott Gotkine there in London with the latest.
All right. I'm joined now by Dr. Richard Brennan who is in Cairo, Egypt. He's the Regional Emergency Director for the World Health Organization's Eastern Mediterranean region. Really appreciate you being up early there for us to talk. What do you know of the situation in the south now that so many Palestinians, thousands and thousands have fled from the north? What, if any, resources are there to accommodate, feed, or even offer them water?
DR. RICHARD BRENNAN, REGIONAL EMERGENCY DIRECTOR, W.H.O.: Yes, I mean, Michael, I think we could describe the situation really is verging on the catastrophic situation is very dire right throughout Gaza. We know that there's been, you know, high levels of violence as your colleague mentioned, over 2,000 deaths now, probably close to 8,000 severely injured as well.
We've got hospitals and clinics that aren't functioning and -- well or -- are only partially functioning. So -- and they've been overloaded with the extra trauma load and, of course, the lack of fuel, the lack of electricity, the loss of some staff, lack of water and declining medical stocks makes it incredibly Difficult to provide that care for the extra, extra caseload.
And now, as you indicate, with all this overcrowding, particularly with the latest population movements into South Gaza, it's really setting ourselves up for a catastrophic public health situation. Overcrowding in these collective centers and schools, poor sanitation, poor access to water, big chance of disease outbreaks. And then you've got the mental health dimension as well. So, it's a -- from a public health perspective, this is as almost as bad as it gets.
HOLMES: Yes. You know, I've been to Gaza a few times. I mean, it's never good there. I mean, it's never -- I mean, the infrastructure is always teetering on the edge. It's hard to imagine how much this has pushed it when you don't have food, fuel, water, and so on. The Palestinian Health Ministry said that hospitals have, you know, lost their clinical, pharmaceutical -- I mean, when the fuel runs out, the operating theatres, it -- could it collapse?
DR. BRENNAN: Well, yes. I mean, it's really stretched to the brink right now. And, therefore, we really do need these humanitarian corridors that people have been talking about for days. And those with the, you know, the decision-making authority. you know, aren't facilitating that. So, we just need that Rafah Border opened ASAP. We need access from wherever it's possible.
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You know, we need to replenish the medical stockpiles. We need the fuel in. We need clean water flowing again. And I mean -- and that's going to take a long time to get that health system back on some sort of even footing. But these are desperate times, and those humanitarian corridors are absolutely vital. It's not just getting the supplies across the border, though. We need those corridors to be secured throughout Gaza so we can reach the vulnerable people in need.
HOLMES: Yes, you get them into the Gaza Strip. You've got to then distribute them. That's absolutely true. I'm wondering what the options are for those who heeded the warning to head south. I mean, potentially, you know, 100,000, 200,000, 300,000 people who've gone to the south, which was already desperately poor. It's not like there's empty apartment buildings there for them or the infrastructure to feed or water them as well. What could happen if there is an outbreak of disease?
DR. BRENNAN: Well, it's going to be very, very difficult to control. You know, the diseases that we most worry about would be a diarrheal disease. And, you know, people who are lack of access to clean water. Kids are becoming malnourished there. So, an outbreak of diarrhea could, could be lethal particularly for vulnerable people like the elderly and young kids would worry about other, you know, pneumonias and COVID, other viral infections that can be spread by what we call droplet transmission.
So, it -- and then the capacity to get on top of those types of outbreaks has been incredibly depleted. So, you know, a lot of people could potentially die and certainly there'll be a lot of suffering.
HOLMES: The risk is always in these situations, conflicts, that people become numbers. Palestinian health officials, they're now saying 700 children are now among the dead in Gaza. Not just the number, 700 kids. What would be your plea to the world when you, when you see a number like that?
DR. BRENNAN: Yes. Well, in fact, the numbers that we have is over 60 percent of those who have died have been women and children. So, our plea, of course, is always, for peace. Our plea is, you know, we come at this for very much from the humanitarian and health perspective. There can't be winners here. I mean, there's been too much suffering on both sides of this conflict for far too long. We need, you know, people of goodwill.
We need people of influence to try and bring some peaceful solution for this, because, you know, I think most of us who are involved in humanitarian action for so much of our professional lives escalations of conflict never seem to solve anything. I mean, we're responsible for work in Afghanistan and Syria, or in Somalia, or in Sudan.
And we can see there that when conflict escalates, it never brings a resolution and it just plunges people more and more into deeper suffering. So, again, we plead for that. We plead for that humanitarian corridor. And we plead for protection of health care as well because, Michael, we've had -- we've documented 41 attacks on health care, 11 health care workers since the start of this conflict.
HOLMES: Yes. It is a dire situation. I -- Dr Richard Brennan with the World Health Organization. Thank you. And thanks for the work that you and others do to try to get aid in. Thank you very much.
DR. BRENNAN: Thank you. Thanks very much.
HOLMES: Well, now to growing concerns that Israel may face a war on multiple fronts. Israel says, it returned fire on Saturday after the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah launched an attack on a disputed area near the Israeli-Lebanese border.
CNN's Ben Wiedemann with this report from Southern Lebanon.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: South Lebanon remains in a state of high tension as fire continues to be exchanged between Israel and militants in Lebanon. Saturday afternoon, artillery rocket and small arms fire echoed across the mountains in the disputed Shebaa Farms area between Lebanon and Israel in the most prolonged exchange yet.
The Israeli military said 30 mortar rounds were fired from Lebanon into Israel. While Hezbollah put out a statement claiming its fighters had used precision weapons to target five Israeli positions, including an Israeli surveillance post.
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Late Saturday, the group's media wing put out video showing precise hits on communications and surveillance equipment at those positions. The official Lebanese news agency reported that an elderly couple was killed when an Israeli round struck their house in the Lebanese town of Shebaa. Hezbollah said, one of its fighters was killed in confrontations with Israeli forces.
Earlier in the day, residents of the Southern Lebanese town of Al Khiam came out to mourn the killing of Reuters cameraman Issam Abdallah, well known in the Middle East press corps for his work in conflict zones around the region.
Friday afternoon, Abdallah was filming an exchange of fire between Israel and Hezbollah when their position was struck with rockets fired. Witnesses told CNN, from the Israeli side of the border. Six other journalists were injured, all were wearing protective gear with press markings. An Israeli spokesman described Abdallah's death as tragic but didn't concede it was caused by an Israeli strike.
Now, also Saturday evening, the head of Israel's National Security Council, in a televised briefing with journalists, said Israel hopes to avoid a two front war involving Lebanon. He said, the current level of clashes between Israel and Hezbollah is, in his words, below the escalation threshold. He also said, we hope Hezbollah won't bring about the destruction of Lebanon.
Now, in the past, Israeli leaders have warned, among other things, that if Hezbollah goes to war with Israel again, Israel will send Lebanon back to the Stone Age.
I'm Ben Wiedemann, CNN, reporting from Southern Lebanon.
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HOLMES: Still to come on the program, where did Hamas get the weapons of war? CNN analysis -- analyzes video of the attack to get answers. We'll have that story more after the break.
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HOLMES: Welcome back, everyone. You're watching "CNN Newsroom" with me, Michael Holmes.
It is a signal of deterrence. And as Israel prepares to expand its operations in Gaza, officials telling CNN that the Pentagon has ordered a second carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean.
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The first one arrived off the coast of Israel earlier this week, although the U.S. warships are not intended to join the fighting in Gaza nor take part in Israel's operations. In addition, officials say a rapid reaction force capable of special operations is also making preparations.
Meanwhile, CNN has analyzed images and videos of Hamas' deadly assault on Israel last week to identify the weapons the military group used and how they got hold of them. CNN's Oren Liebermann with that report.
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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): An entire arsenal on display. Weapons fashioned in Hamas's homegrown facilities, but no less deadly. CNN analyzed dozens of photos and videos of Hamas militants during the surprise assault to identify the weapons used to kill at least 1,200 people in Israel.
MAJ. MIKE LYONS, U.S. ARMY (RET.): The most important characteristic of the military equipment they have is that it's easily interchangeable, it's reliable, dependable, and you can get parts for it.
LIEBERMANN (voiceover): Many, like this Soviet Bill 50 caliber machine gun, appear to be Russian or Chinese firearms, relics from previous wars that made their way into the hands of Hamas. Ubiquitous among many of the photos and videos, the Avtomat Kalashnikova, AK-47, the preferred weapon for militant groups, capable of spewing automatic fire with horrific results. The assault rifles, along with the grenades carried by Hamas militants, made them deadly when they reached Israeli towns and villages near Gaza.
LYONS: All they're trying to do is provide the shock effects, provide dependability. Their weapons have to work. So, they're very rudimentary. But based on their training, based on how they operate them, they are successful with them.
LIEBERMANN (voiceover): Hamas' main weapon has long been their supply of rockets, short range to long range. The terror attack on Saturday morning began with a barrage of rocket fire, smoke screen for the imminent attack. Thousands of rockets overwhelmed Israel's Iron Dome air defense system, a tactic Hamas has refined over the years.
LYONS: And that's the capability for the enemy for Hamas to fire them up against potentially commercial aircrafts. And that, I think, is one of the major issues of these terrorist groups since they have those kinds of weapons in their hands.
LIEBERMANN (voiceover): Hamas used paragliders to cross the Gaza border. The recreational vehicles are barely maneuverable and easy to target in the air. But in the chaos of the moment, the plan worked. Some of the weapons and equipment were decidedly more low tech. Israel built a complex underground barrier to stop tunnels from crossing the Gaza border, so Hamas used a bulldozer to tear down the above ground fence.
LYONS: They are just looking to create chaos with the kind of equipment they have, and the equipment has got to be reliable.
LIEBERMANN: The weapons we just looked at are only what we've seen so far in the attack that came out of Gaza, but we know Hamas has other weapons. We have seen them use anti-tank or anti-armor missiles in the past, and it's weapons like that that make an Israeli ground incursion such a difficult proposition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Joining me now is retired U. S. Army Major John Spencer, the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Madison Policy Forum. And thanks for being with us, sir. You know, I'm reminded the Second Battle for Fallujah in Iraq in 2004 was the bloodiest battle for American forces in the entire war. Urban, street to street, house to house. Gaza is bigger. There are many differences, of course, but what would a battle for Gaza City look like as a ground operation?
MAJ. JOHN SPENCER, U.S. ARMY (RET.) AND CHAIR OF URBAN WARFARE, MADISON POLICY FORUM: I think it would look a lot more destructive than the Second Battle of Fallujah, which had a lot of very unique features, namely that we had six months in preparation to position all the forces, empty the city of 90 percent of the civilians, and it still destroyed most of the city. I think the battle in Gaza City or other urban areas in Gaza would look more like the 2017 Battle of Mosul against ISIS. Just house to house military grade, vehicle-borne IEDs in dumpsters, and the destruction at every building block by block as the enemy wills through like mouse holes of all the tunnels networks between the buildings to try to hold it as long as they can.
I mean, war is killing. War is destruction. But even with all the modern technologies of the today's world, in order to do an operation to clear an enemy like ISIS, like Hamas from a city, and take away their military capability it's very destructive and very costly to everybody.
HOLMES: So, what then are the major challenges of such an environment? I covered Fallujah and I covered Mosul, tell us what the major challenges are.
SPENCER: The major challenges are that the defenders had time to prepare and that no matter what you have to move forward and basically wait until the defender shoots you. And that's the problem with the anti-tank guided munitions, the RPGs. I mean, in that Second Battle of Fallujah, we lost six tanks in the opening hours just from the enemy's volley fire.
[23:40:00]
It's called combat in hell because you have to, like, walk down the street and get punched in the face to find where the enemy is. And then once you find them, most of your weapons really challenged to punch through steel, concrete reinforced, you know, concrete, that's why you see much more use of artillery.
And we thought -- we were firing thousands of artillery rounds a day in all those operations, and that's I think that's what we're going to see because the soldiers face almost insurmountable odds in a city which is really military grade bunkers. And Hamas has this feature that we haven't seen in modern history, which is layers and layers of tunnels. Not just a tunnel connecting to a house or here, I mean, very deep tunnel complexes. Really you have to go down or clear or have to deal with the fact that the enemy can escape all the bombing.
HOLMES: Tell us more about that. I mean, because there are marked advantages for the home force, if you like, the entrenched force, they know the turf. Tell us about those advantages and what tactics Hamas might employ.
SPENCER: Yes. So, there are some disadvantages that Hamas didn't have like ISIS did with these layered obstacle belt outside the city. But inside the city, you can guarantee Hamas has prepared it in every type of guerrilla tactic that we've ever seen in urban warfare. Being able to move underneath one building, you call in fire, and you don't get the enemy, he just moves to the next. And you precisely, with precision guided munitions, destroy the whole block, trying to get a few enemy combatants inside there who can pop up behind you, in front of you. in the house you just cleared. You know, it's really hard to do this operation because every direction you face a potential bomb, house form bombs, vehicle bombs, underground bombs. But the tunnels are very unique because that's usually once you identify where the enemy is then you can use precision guided munition or infantry or tanks to take them out. But if you can move all throughout the city under those tunnels, they'll have planned for -- to attack you once, pop up behind you, move to the next building.
And that's why it just takes so long. It took us nine months to pry, you know, less than four or five thousand ISIS from the Battle of Mosul. Nine months and a hundred thousand troops.
HOLMES: Yes, yes. I remember it well. I mean, how does the presence of hostages being there complicate Israel's options in a tactical sense?
SPENCER: Yes, in a tactical sense, it's like a paradox. The longer you wait, the less chance that the hostages might be alive. The faster you go, the more chance that the hostages will be used. Since Hamas uses human shields, you can guarantee they'll use as much hostage shields. Put them inside the tunnels so you can't destroy the tunnels. Put them right in front of them. It causes a really -- that -- now, that's a historical challenge that I don't remember from any of my studies in any other major battle like this where you have really the industrial level 100 hostages that could potentially be caught in the middle.
HOLMES: Yes, it's a great point. And you made a great point earlier too about Fallujah where the Americans did get out virtually all the civilians, most of them, the vast majority. What -- there are going to be civilians in Gaza because a million people haven't left. What do you fear the next few days are going to look like? How bloody could it get?
SPENCER: It can get very bloody. And actually, again, it reminds me and I know you covered it, but Mosul, right, which is a city of 1. 4 million. Initially, ISIS kept 750,000, 800,000 trapped in there, and there are over 10,000 human or civilian casualties. And let's be clear, the civilians never all leave. It's usually about 10 percent, and 10 percent of a million is still a lot.
HOLMES: Yes.
SPENCER: But the fact that Hamas is trapping them there, it could be extremely costly in casualties. Even if you abide by all the laws of war and do it very deliberately, that's the major humanitarian crisis and the cost to the city, right? This will destroy most of those cities.
HOLMES: It's a fascinating and important insight about what might be ahead in the next days and weeks. John Spencer, really appreciate your expertise. I know you were there in Iraq. You served a lot. Thanks so much. I appreciate it.
SPENCER: Thank you, Michael. HOLMES: A rise in antisemitism around Europe has Jewish communities on edge. Fears of unrest in France have caused the government to raise its security level to the highest level possible. We'll have that story and more when we come back.
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HOLMES: Welcome back. Some Jewish communities in the U.S. say, they are on edge amid the Hamas-Israel conflict. The recent pro-Palestinian protest in New York and in other major cities have them concerned for their safety, they say. Members of the American Jewish Committee tell us security measures are starting to ramp up around synagogues.
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TED DEUTCH, CEO, AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE: I went to attend Sabbath, Shabbat services. You had to have your name on a list to get through the gate to be able to pray. Let that sink in, especially for friends outside of the Jewish community who find that rightfully impossible to imagine. This morning when I went to a different synagogue, we had to go past enhanced security and through a metal detector when we went in.
This is what we're seeing all over the country. And I know, sadly, because of rising antisemitism in America and around the world. Some in the Jewish community have just to -- have just come to accept this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now in Europe, a rise in antisemitism is worrying the Jewish community as well. French police say they have detained 65 people for dozens of antisemitic acts since the Israeli Hamas conflict began.
And the U.K. is increasing security after they say there was an uptick in antisemitic activity. CNN's Melissa Bell now with more from Paris.
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MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Far from the front lines of the Israel-Hamas war, many European Jews say they're not just feeling the pain of what's happening there, but also fearing the potential ramifications much closer to home.
In France, at the Great Synagogue in Marseille, a prayer is held for the people of Israel. It's a fervent prayer. After reports of antisemitic incidents in parts of Europe, after Hamas launched its assault on Israel more than a week ago, and Israel's subsequent bombardment of Gaza.
MARC MEIMOUN, WORSHIPPER (through translator): First of all, it's important to be present whenever the Jewish people are in danger. Unfortunately, we're used to this kind of gathering, this kind of prayer. We're tired of it all. Nevertheless, we have to respond in unity. BELL (voiceover): France is home to Europe's largest Jewish population, as well as the largest Muslim population in Western Europe. French President Emmanuel Macron has urged his citizens to remain united, though French police used water cannon and tear gas to break up a recent rally in support of the Palestinian people, which had been banned by French officials, citing concerns about public order.
But there are fears of further unrest in France. 10, 000 police officers have been deployed to protect synagogues and Jewish schools. And on Friday, France raised its security alert to the highest level after a knife attack at a school the French interior minister says was linked to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
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The UK is also stepping up security after reports of increased antisemitic incidents. The Community Security Trust, a British nonprofit organization that monitors antisemitism, says the number of incidents reported to them in the past week has increased by more than 300 percent compared to the same period last year.
Tensions at times spilling out onto the streets of London where flyers of Israelis reportedly kidnapped by Hamas were torn down.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is for Palestine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're not -- please if it's children. It's children. It's innocent people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. What about the children in Palestine?
BELL (voiceover): Germany, meanwhile, says it has a zero-tolerance policy towards antisemitic acts and will ban all activities supporting Hamas, which is on the EU's list of terror groups. German officials say, they can do no less.
FRANK-WALTER STEINMEIER, GERMAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Protecting Jewish life in Germany is part of the identity of our democracy. The security of Jews in Germany is our democracy at its core. Only if our Jewish citizens live in peace and security can our country as a whole do so.
BELL (voiceover): Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
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HOLMES: For days, images and videos from the war have been filling our social media feeds but they're not all what they seem. We'll take a look at some of the fake viral videos that are telling a story that is completely wrong.
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HOLMES: The European Union has sent Google and its subsidiary YouTube a warning over how they handle fake or graphic content linked to the Israel-Hamas war. One week since the conflict began, fake videos claiming to show the fighting have gone viral with worrying results.
CNN's Donie O'Sullivan with more on that.
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DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): One video shows a rocket purportedly fired by Hamas. Another video claims to show Israeli jets bombing Gaza. But neither is real. This video is actually footage from a video game called Arma 3. And this is actually video of soccer celebrations in Algeria. It's all part of a tidal wave of viral mis and disinformation circulating around the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Adi Cohen works with Memetica, an online threat intelligence service. He's been monitoring misinformation like this, a fake BBC News report that falsely claimed Ukraine had provided weapons to Hamas.
O'SULLIVAN: This is relatively sophisticated stuff. I mean, it's got even the same kind of graphics set as the BBC News normally would have.
ADI COHEN, COO, MEMETICA: Right. And I think what happened over recent years is that it becomes very easy, affordable to mimic those graphics, visualization.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): In response to the false news report, the BBC told CNN in a statement, in a world of increasing disinformation, we urge everyone to ensure they are getting news from a trusted source.
Just hours after the Hamas attack began on Saturday, this began circulating on social media, a fake White House memo falsely claiming the U.S. was immediately sending billions of dollars in new aid to Israel.
O'SULLIVAN: This is like some more old school disinformation. A fake White House document circulated pretty widely online.
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COHEN: Right. I do want to point out though, it is an old school tactic that we've seen, you know, for multiple years by now. But with the current tools you can also create it very quickly and make it more believable.
GRAHAM BROOKIE, DIGITAL FORENSIC RESEARCH LAB, ATLANTIC COUNCIL: There's new information every second, every minute, every hour. And so, there's a lot of room for error as things develop on the ground.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Graham Brookie tracks disinformation with the Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab.
BROOKIE: And this conflict is hyper connected. Israel is a very, very connected country. And so, we're seeing an enormous amount of misleading content coming out of this conflict as the world's eyes are watching it.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Twitter, now known as X, is a major source of misinformation. In part because of the changes Elon Musk made to the platform since he took it over, including laying off key employees. On Thursday, the European Commission announced it was opening an investigation into disinformation on X about the Israel Hamas conflict.
COHEN: Another component of it, I would say, is that because Several platforms of scaled back and moderation. It's much easier to spread rumors, unsubstantiated rumors, false information very quick.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): But this isn't just an information war. It's a real war, and false information can be fatal.
BROOKIE: And that disinformation is extraordinarily harmful, including putting folks lives at risk.
O'SULLIVAN: Now, X, formerly Twitter, says that it is moving resources around at the company after, of course, it had all those layoffs under Musk to try and address some of these issues. But look, this is not a problem that is exclusive to X, it is happening on other platforms as well, but right now, it's quite pronounced on X. You can see false videos, misleading videos getting hundreds of thousands, millions of views on the platform before anything is really done about them.
And, of course, the real tragedy is here, you know, there is no need to post these fake videos and images. We have seen the tragic footage, the real footage from Israel and Gaza. And, of course, it is upsetting enough these fake videos and images really just adding to the chaos, confusion, and concern.
Donie O'Sullivan, CNN, New York.
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HOLMES: Thanks for spending part of your day with me watching "CNN Newsroom." I'm Michael Holmes. I will be back with another hour of "CNN Newsroom."
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