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Rafah Crossing Opens Briefly, Allowing 20 Aid Trucks Into Gaza; American Mother And Daughter Freed by Hamas; Pro-Palestinian Protests Grow Across Middle East; Family Waits For Word On Missing Loved One After Attacks; Kenneth Chesebro Admits He Conspired With Trump To Subvert GA Elections; Iranian Military Chief Warning U.S. Against Sending Weapons To Israel; CNN Journalist Details Living Situation Since Escaping Gaza City. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired October 21, 2023 - 11:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:00:36]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone. Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Atlanta alongside Wolf Blitzer is in Washington. I'll talk with you in moment.

We begin with our special coverage of the rapidly changing events in Israel and Gaza. After days of waiting, the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt was opened briefly this morning allowing 20 trucks carrying humanitarian aid to cross into Gaza. The United Nations says it in included drinking water for more than 22,000 people. But that's just for a single day.

International groups are warning 20 trucks isn't nearly enough aid. Water, fuel, and food are all running desperately low in Gaza and the United Nations is warning that Gaza's hospitals are on the brink of collapse.

One American trapped in Gaza described his situation to CNN this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABOOD OKAL, U.S. CITIZEN; HE AND FAMILY STUCK IN GAZA: We thought that strategic (ph) that we could stay close to the border because we have faith that the State Department would work on extracting us or getting us out of Gaza do some (INAUDIBLE).

We have been here for a week. We're staying in a normal single-family home, two floors with about 40 people. Sharing everything we can share from food to drinking water, supplies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Smoke is still rising over parts of Gaza as airstrikes continue. The death toll now stands at more than 4,300 people, according to the Palestinian ministry of health. Meantime, tens of thousands of Israeli troops continue to amass along

the Gaza border. And today the Israel Defense Forces updated the number of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza to now 210 people.

Two American hostages, a mother and her teenage daughter are free following their surprise release yesterday. They were visiting family at a kibbutz close to Gaza when they were taken hostages by Hamas.

Let's get the latest now -- Wolf.

(CROSSTALKING)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Right now -- ok, good.

Let's get some more now on that badly needed aid that just arrived in Gaza from Egypt.

CNN's Clarissa Ward is following all the late-breaking developments from Cairo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So now, it's been two weeks of no aid, relentless bombardment, mass displacement. 20 trucks is obviously just a drop in the ocean. But officials are saying that they are hopeful that this is the start of something more sustained, more continuous.

The U.N. believes and hopes that potentially tomorrow or on Monday that more of their trucks could go through. Today those 20 trucks were Egyptian Red Crescent trucks. They drove through the Rafah border crossing. They unloaded that aid which was food, water, medicine. Palestinian trucks then loaded the aid and drove it through to the Gaza side.

Now there's a meeting today of Arab leaders here in Cairo. It's called a conference of peace. President Sisi, the Egyptian president spoke in the last hour or so. He said this is a welcome sign, put it's not enough. We need to build on this and establish a sustained humanitarian corridor. We need a humanitarian cease-fire as well. And beyond that, we need to work on establishing some kind of a peace process, two-state solution.

So quite a long list of things that need to happen. Right now, there seems to be consensus at least on that first step of trying to establish a more continuous or sustained humanitarian corridor.

The hospitals at this stage are barely functioning. The fuel supplies according to one U.N. person who I was speaking to will be out or depleted in two or three days.

So that is a vital resource that is desperately needed and negotiations ongoing to try to get at least 100 trucks in every single day in what would be the beginning of the continuous corridor and hopefully, eventually also the establishment, as the Israelis had previously mentioned and also President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken of some kind of a humanitarian zone where some of the 900,000 displaced people inside Gaza could find some refuge and some respite. We're still though a long way from that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:04:56]

BLITZER: A very long way indeed. Clarissa Ward reporting from Cairo. Thank you.

An American mother and daughter released by Hamas are being reunited with their family today in an Israeli military base. Judith Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter Natalie were held hostage for nearly two weeks after being abducted by the terrorist organization.

Let's go to CNN's Whitney Wild. She's joining us from Evanston, Illinois, the hometown of the Raanans. Whitney, how is the community reacting to this excellent news of their release?

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it is just the biggest sigh of relief here because this community had so much been on edge waiting, glued to the television, not knowing if Judith and Natalie were alive or dead. And for family members, the wait was just excruciating.

We spoke with Natalie's father Uri Raanan, Judith's ex-husband, who said that he spoke with Natalie. It was a brief conversation, but he said she sounded very, very good. She sounded very happy. He's so eager to have her back on U.S. soil back in the Chicago area.

He said that she sounded like she was ok, but still many more questions about what she endured. He said that they didn't talk about that on the phone. In this moment, Wolf, he is deeply relieved.

Here's how he described the wait and what comes next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URI RAANAN, HUSBAND AND FATHER OF RELEASED HOSTAGES: I have been waiting for this moment for a long time, for two weeks. I haven't been sleeping for two weeks. Tonight I'm going to sleep good.

I spoke with my daughter earlier today. She sounds very good. She looks very good. She was very happy. And she's waiting to come home.

I'm going to hug her and kiss her and it's going to be the best day of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILD: And Wolf, the timing here is just perfect for this family because her birthday, her 18th birthday is on Tuesday. And the expectation is that she will be back on U.S. soil by then. A great -- again a relief to this family, who had been waiting with very little word on their condition, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Whitney Wild, reporting for us. Whitney, thanks so much. I'm very happy for the family.

I want to bring in retired two-star army General Dana Pittard for some perspective right now. General, thank you so much for joining us. We'll discuss the hostage situation very shortly.

But I want to get to that aid convoy that has now crossed into Gaza today. Palestinian officials say 20 trucks simply won't be enough to help this worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza. What impact will these 20 trucks make?

GEN. DANA PITTARD, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Well, good morning, Wolf and Fredricka.

20 trucks will help, but the 20 trucks may help maybe 30,000 people when in fact, nearly a million people -- 900,000 people need the help. So there needs to be a lot more in that truck convoy.

Right now, it's medical supplies and other essentials, but it doesn't include food, it doesn't include fuel. So more is needed for the people of Gaza.

BLITZER: So what happens to this aid now that it's crossed the border into Gaza?

PITTARD: Well, it's encouraging, but unfortunately, we're dealing and Israel's dealing with this terrorist organization of Hamas. So Hamas, who knows what they are going to do with it.

Ideally, it will go to the people especially the medical supplies, but it may or may not. So that is one thing that is not known right now.

BLITZER: General, what's being done to ensure that only aid is making its way across the border from Egypt into Gaza, not weapons or ammunition or anything deadly, for example.

PITTARD: Well, that's part of the agreement between Egypt, the U.S. and even Israel is to ensure that weapons of war that can help Hamas can't cross. So it's really on the Egyptian side where that's really being checked hard.

And as far as on the Gaza side, it's Hamas. And Hamas can't be trusted.

BLITZER: So how can the U.S. be confident, General, that the aid is going to where it's intended, to the real people -- the Palestinian people in Gaza and not necessarily to Hamas terrorists?

PITTARD: Well, Wolf that's the dilemma. They can't be trusted. So there are some Red Cross -- International Red Cross on the ground who are trying to help with that. And there's other organizations, but ultimately for Gaza, Hamas is calling the shots right now. So there is no guarantee.

BLITZER: And what do you think? How does a potential, and all of us assume it will happen, a potential full-scale Israeli ground incursion into Gaza impact the hostage situation in Gaza. PITTARD: Well, it impacts a lot. Obviously, the campaign against Gaza

by Israel has already begun. Israel is using fire bombers and artillery to hit targets throughout Gaza City in Gaza.

[11:09:54]

PITTARD: They are trying to cut off the head of Hamas. They are using special ops, they're using cyber attacks, they're using intelligence operations as they move forward.

(AUDIO GAP)

PITTARD: -- has not begun yet. And what's causing Israelis pause is a number of things.

One certainly is the hostage situation, to see if the hostages can be released if not found and rescued possibly. There's concern about civilian casualties. There's concern about Hezbollah in the north that once Israel commits to the fight in Gaza, that Hezbollah may attack the north.

And then there's also making sure that the IDF is in fact ready. They've done the mobilization but you still have to prepare the troops and units for this fight.

BLITZER: Maj. Gen. Dana Pittard, thank you so much for your analysis.

PITTARD: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: We're also continuing to see pro-Palestinian demonstrations in the Middle East and indeed around the world.

CNN's Nada Bashir is in Jordan where we have been seeing protests all this week.

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well look Wolf, we definitely have seen these protests ramping up across the Middle East and particularly here in Jordan, where more than half of the population are the Palestinians -- so this is a deeply personal issue -- a deeply personal crisis for many here as it is across the region.

What we have seen is demonstrations every night towards the Israeli embassy. Protesters chanting their solidarity with the Palestinian people, with the people of Gaza. But also calling for an end to the airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and calling for an end to the siege on Gaza.

Now tonight we aren't expecting any huge demonstrations outside the Israeli embassy, but what we saw yesterday is not only the usual demonstration, but thousands of people taking to the streets of downtown Amman, marching through the streets in a show of opposition following Friday prayers.

This is really a cause which has united people across the country. And we have seen that reflected across the region Lebanon, Iraq, Tunisia, Egypt where, you know, protests typically aren't sanctioned by the state. We have some people being allowed to protest in Tahrir Square. So this is a significant cause for many here.

And I have to say there is outrage, there's anger being directed towards the Israeli government as well as the Israeli government's allies including the United States.

People here are seeing the mounting death toll in Gaza, they are seeing the destruction of civilian areas in Gaza. They are hearing from rights groups that Gaza is now on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. This catastrophe is unfolding according to some.

We are seeing food, electricity, fuel, water, not being able to get in. And of course, this has been a moment of hope today where we have seen some aid trucks getting in but this is going to be a long and difficult road.

As the situation in Gaza worsens and as we begin to see violence -- violence continuing in the West Bank, these protests are not going to let up, Wolf.

BLITZER: Nada, what's been the response at least so far from Jordan's leadership?

BASHIER: Well look, I think it's important to note here that Jordan is an ally of the United States. The King Abduallah also a key ally of U.S. President Joe Biden. The Jordanian royal family, the Jordanian government had been vocal in their condemnation of Israel's aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip. And you know, of course, that King Abdullah is today in attendance of the Cairo peace summit taking place, hosted by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

And he had some pretty strong words today. Let me just read you a bit of what he had to say. He said "I'm outraged and grieved by those acts of violence waged against innocent civilians in Gaza, in the West Bank, and in Israel.

The relentless bombing campaign underway in Gaza as we speak is cruel and (INAUDIBLE) on every level. It is collective punishment of the besieged, helpless people. It's a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. It is a war crime."

And this is the message we've been hearing from the outset of this war from the Jordanian leadership, from the Egyptian leadership, from many leaders across the Arab World.

But I think it is also important to note that these protects in acts of solidarity with the Palestinian people, acts of opposition to the airstrikes that we're seeing in Gaza are not just happening in the Middle East. They are happening across the globe from London to Washington, D.C.

BLITZER: I think it's significant Nada, and I'm sure, and I'm sure you'll agree me that Jordan like Egypt has full diplomatic relations with Israel. And understand where you are in Amman, there have been major anti-Israeli demonstrations unfolding around the U.S. embassy there. Is that right? BASHIR: We have seen some demonstrations outside the U.S. embassy. And

in fact yesterday, at the March that we attended where thousands of people took part, we did hear chants calling on the Jordanian government to close down the U.S. and Israeli embassies. The U.S. of course, seen here and expressed as staunch ally of the Israeli government.

[11:14:46]

BASHIR: And there was a real sense of anger here. Many people feel that there's a sentiment of indifference towards the deaths of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, that they are not getting as much attention in the international community, that the news coverage has been skewed to one side.

So there is palpable anger here. It is felt in Amman, it is felt across the Middle East. It's felt in the protests in London, in New York. That is certainly a key element here.

And of course, as you said, Jordan has full diplomatic relations with Israel. It is a key ally also of the United States. And it will continue to play a central role, as well as Egypt, in any prospect of establishing some sort of peace, some sort of resolution to this ongoing conflict and of course, in ending the siege on the Gaza Strip, Wolf.

BLITZER: Nada Bashir, reporting from Amman, Jordan. Nada, thank you very, very much.

Still to come, families of the victims of Hamas' brutal attack in Israel still coping with tragedy. Up next, I'll speak with the mother and uncle of a woman missing after the attack at the Nova Music Festival not far from Gaza in Israel.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:19:54]

BLITZER: As the fighting continues between Israel and Hamas, many families are left waiting for word on their missing loved ones.

28-year-old Eden Zecharia (ph) went to the Nova Music Festival with her boyfriend Olsek (ph) and their friend Libbi (ph). And she's been missing ever since.

I'm joined now by Orin Gantz (ph) Eden's mother and Alon Eini (ph) Eden's uncle. I want to begin by saying how deeply sorry I am about what your family is going through, what you're experiencing right now.

First of all Orin, some background. Tell us what happened the day of that brutal attack.

ORIN GANTZ, DAUGHTER EDEN ZECHARIA IS MISSING: Ok. Alon is going to tell you (INAUDIBLE). ALON EINI, NIECE EDEN ZECHARIA IS MISSING: I will just help to say the

story and speak about it.

Basically, Eden was in the festival, the music festival. Around 6:00 in the morning the sirens started. Every time there's a bombing in Israel, there's a siren in some areas. In that particular moment it was sirens around the festival, everybody -- you know, Israel is pretty used to getting bombed, so everybody started to evacuate the festival, it's pretty easy.

And Eden left the festival immediately. She wanted to get back home. She just wanted to go back home to be in a safe place. She took her car with her boyfriend. Her boyfriend was driving the car and her friend was sleeping in the back. Her friend is Libby.

After around 15-minute drive, they started to get shots, bullet shots at the car. They didn't know from where, what was going on. They just saw some people standing in front of them, pretty far at the moment, and shooting at them.

You need to understand in Israel, to see somebody with a gun, it's not something that you're freaking out about. It's something that makes sense. So nobody, I don't think they realized or if somebody realized that something is wrong. Until they're starting to shoot at them.

And the second they shoot at them, Eden immediately got shot, we don't know where, we don't know what's the damage of the shot, but she got shot immediately.

By the way, everything I'm telling is from the witness, from the girl that was sitting at the back. Eden got shot. She lost her conscious immediately. We don't know if she's alive or dead at that moment.

Her boyfriend got two bullets, one in the shoulder and one in the leg. They called the ambulance immediately. The car stopped for some reason, probably because of the bullet.

They called to the ambulance. The phone call to the ambulance was around 7 minutes. There was panicking, there was under a lot of pressure. They tried to send locations for the ambulance, but they couldn't do it. The pressure was way too high.

And some point -- in some point, they had a chance to get out of the car. Eden got -- Eden stayed in the car. She was locked in the car. She couldn't get out. She couldn't move. She was unconscious. Her boyfriend and the girl at the back got out of the car and was hiding probably 15 minutes -- 15 meters away under a tree. They were hiding there for around two hours.

After two hours, the boyfriend Olsek was under a lot of pain because of the bullets and said ok, I have to find some soldiers, some forces to take care of me. And in the second he got out, he got shot immediately. The same shot that killed him, you know, they're shooting an automatic, it also hit Libbi, the girl. She got shot in the shoulder and in the hand. She lost a few fingers and she had very rough surgeries in the shoulder. After that, Libbi kept on moving back towards our soldiers. She was

crawling -- she kept on crawling until our soldiers found her and rescued her.

[11:24:40]

EINI: And from that moment, we have not a clue of what happened. We found -- not we -- the forces of Israel found Olsek's body two days ago. And Eden is still missing.

I know -- we know that Israelis are doing everything they can to find her, alive or dead. And the thing is and what makes it is so difficult, the fact that they were shooting (INAUDIBLE) and the cars and burning the cars.

And even if she was in the car, it's hard to recognize it, to find something that we understand it is Eden. So there's a lot of work to do. I think, if I'm not mistaken, there's more than 300 bodies that we still haven't -- we don't know who they are.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Let me get Orin into this conversation. Orin, could you tell us a little bit about Eden.

EINI: Eden was a very happy person, very smiling person. She loved the life, she loved the living, the living. She was every morning where we used to write in her diary thanks for everything. Thanks for life, thanks for family, thanks for friend, thanks for the work.

She loved dogs. She had two beautiful dogs. It's funny because she believed in peace. All she wanted was peace. She really believed that when she's going to this festival to unite everybody.

BLITZER: She was at the music festival not far from Gaza in the Negev.

Let's get a little bit back to Alon, how is the family doing now in the weeks since this Hamas attack?

EINI: How our family is doing?

BLITZER: Yes.

EINI: It's shifting, you know, I must say it's shifting. At the beginning, I'm living in Portugal, I'm not living in Israel. But in the second I heard about it, I came straight to Israel to be with my sister.

Well what's bothering Orin the most is the fact that during all the years, in Israel we're always under attack. It's not something new. People think we are in a war at the moment but we're always under attack. It's a daily routine in Israel to be under attack.

And she's really shocked to see that in this moment that everyone saw what happened. You know, everyone saw it. Still, the world giving us such hard times because from her opinion, we had a small talk before and she said first they need to bring them home.

First of all, before any war, before any conflict, before anything we're talking about, bring these kids home.

I don't know exactly how to say it in English but she's saying they are not kidnapped because of war. They are hostages civilians. They're just like -- imagine that somebody come into new country and just taking people out there. Nothing to do with any war or any diplomacy. Nothing.

During all the years, they spread lies about us. And what happened in this massacre, it's not suddenly. People think suddenly something happened. It's not suddenly.

[11:29:43]

EINI: They build it during the years with lies and lies and attacking us and stabbing us and killing us. We have clip -- they are lying about the (INAUDIBLE), they're lying about everything. And then the massacre happened and everybody woke up.

BLITZER: Alon, we did see two hostages released by Hamas in Gaza yesterday. They are now back in Israel. Does that give you hope?

EINI: One second (INAUDIBLE). She's saying it's from Orin's point of view it's a game. They are doing a game. They just manipulate us. There's nothing that they did that they wanted to release somebody.

They manipulate the war. They want to play with our feelings and for us to say the family -- Orin says that the family is even more hurting. To see that they divided who they can release and who they can't because for us it's a group (ph) that everybody needs to get back home.

Right now, they are acting like they're the gods. They are allowed to do whatever they want. If they want to release, they release. If they don't want to release, they won't. If they want to kill, they will kill.

And by the way, we know that we will see movies about hostages that we don't want to see. We know that. They will manipulate our feelings. They will play with our feelings. They will try to break our feelings. We know that.

BLITZER: Alon Eini, Orin Gantz, to both of you we wish only happy ending to this. Good luck to both of you, to your entire family. And we will clearly want to stay in touch.

We'll have much more of our special coverage, right after this.

[11:31:51]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. We will get back to our Israel-Hamas conflict coverage in a moment. But now stateside, a stunning moment in a Fulton County, Georgia

courtroom. The pro-Trump attorney who helped orchestrate the plot to overturn Georgia's 2020 election results entered a guilty plea on Friday just as his trial was set to begin.

Kenneth Chesebro pleaded guilty to one felony, conspiracy to commit filing false documents. He will now serve five years' probation and pay $5,000 in restitution. Chesebro's decision comes just a day after Trump attorney Sidney Powell entered her own guilty plea.

Joining us right now is the attorney representing Kenneth Chesebro, Scott Grubman. Scott, great to see you. Glad you could join us.

This trial was set to begin yesterday. Why did your client Mr. Chesebro, decide his plea deal was the best path forward?

SCOTT GRUBMAN, ATTORNEY FOR KENNETH CHESEBRO: Well, first of all, thank you so much for having me. I would say this is pretty common in criminal cases. As you get closer to trial, both sides start realizing that it's a scary proposition, particularly for a criminal defendant to have his or her future decided by 12 strangers.

And so it's fairly common whether it's a high-profile case like this or a run-of-the-mill case that criminal defense lawyers handle every day that on the eve of trial, a plea offer will be made and oftentimes those plea offers are accepted.

And look, Mr. Chesebro is ready to move on with his life. He's ready to go home. He's ready to be with his family. And this plea deal gives him something that a trial could never give him -- a guaranteed closure right now and a guarantee of not a day in jail. And so he's pleased with the plea deal. He's pleased to be able to move on with his life.

WHITFIELD: But it's also -- while it's common practice, it's more than just being able to move on with your life. It's also as a result of indicators that the evidence is there, the evidence against you and you're not likely to win this case. So was it your decision or by your encouragement or was it Kenneth Chesebro, who is an attorney, who looked at the preponderance of evidence and figured there is no way I could win this?

GRUBMAN: So respectfully, Fredricka, I'd like to push back a little bit. I don't think it's exactly accurate to say that a guilty plea indicates that the defendant or his lawyer thought there was a likelihood of a conviction.

Like I said, a guilty plea is simply the way to get a guaranteed outcome. It was not my decision. It's never the lawyer's decision. Ultimately, it was the client's decision. Of course, all clients listen to their lawyers or at least they should listen to their lawyers.

And we gave Mr. Chesebro the right advice we thought was best at the time. I won't get into the advice, of course, because that's privilege. But at the end of the day, it was his decision and it was his decision to just put this case behind him.

WHITFIELD: All right. So this plea deal removed the racketeering and RICO charges your client was facing. But in court, Chesebro admitted that he conspired to put forward fake electors in Georgia with then- President Trump. Does that mean in so making that statement that he can implicate the former president in a crime?

GRUBMAN: So I'm not trying to be too lawyerly, but I do want to just correct something that may seem fairly minor, but I think is actually very significant. He's admitted his role in preparing documents that at the time, he could acknowledge were false documents. He admitted to a conspiracy to commit the filing of false documents.

[11:39:55]

GRUBMAN: But I want to be clear about something. He did not implicate anyone else. And listen, Ken Chesebro is not interested in defending anyone. I've read oh, he's defending. He's not interested in defending Trump, anyone, but he didn't implicate anyone.

He implicated himself. And now a part of his plea deal is if he is called to testify, he will testify truthfully. And I can tell you he absolutely will.

However, Fredricka, I don't think that's a guarantee he will be called. And personally, I don't see how his testimony hurts Donald Trump, but if he's called to testify for the state, he will come testify for the state. And Fredricka, if he's called to testify by my friend Steve Sadow who represents Donald Trump, then he will testify for Donald Trump or whoever else calls him to testify.

And he's just going to come tell the truth and whatever side if they think that helps them, then that's up to them.

WHITFIELD: All right. Yes. So you say he hasn't implicated anyone thus far. But if called to testify, why else would there be a plea deal if it doesn't mean that it can potentially implicate and further incriminate the biggest fish, you know, among the co-conspirators and that would be the former president.

GRUBMAN: So I'll turn it around a little bit. I don't think this plea deal was an indication that there was some likelihood there would be a conviction. Quite frankly, Fredricka, I think this plea deal was offered by the district attorney's office out of a recognition that the district attorney's office, a, wasn't ready for this trial, and so they offered a probation-only plea deal. And it was under the (INAUDIBLE) Offender Act which means there's no conviction.

But even more importantly, Mr. Chesebro has been called the architect of the fake elector scheme. I would like your viewers to please ask themselves this question. If Mr. Chesebro was the architect of the fake elector scheme, some sort of scheme to bring down democracy, which is what I heard over and over for the last few months, would the district attorney of Fulton County offered him first-offender probation? I really don't think so, Fredricka. So I think this plea deal was offered because the evidence was not

there that he was the architect of some sort of fake elector scheme. Mr. Chesebro is willing to live with it and now he will fulfill the obligations that he committed to when he signed his plea deal. But in terms of whether he's flipping against anyone or anything like that, he's simply going to tell the truth and if the jury decides that helped one side or the other, so be it.

WHITFIELD: Ok. And again, as part of this plea deal, it means accepting a sentence of three to five years of probation, $1,000 fine, $5,000 in restitution to the state of Georgia, an apology letter, 100 hours of community service and again that promise to testify truthfully if called upon.

Scott Grubman, thank you so much.

GRUBMAN: Thank you. And congratulations on your recent lifetime achievement award. Well deserved.

WHITFIELD: So nice of you. Thank you so much.

All right. We'll be right back.

[11:43:13]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

As Israeli forces continue the bombardment of Gaza, and troops and tanks gear up for a likely ground invasion into Gaza, Iran's military chief is warning the U.S. about the consequences of sending weapons to Israel.

According to Iranian state media, he said it, I'm quoting now, "further complicates the situation in Gaza", end quote.

Trita Parsi is the executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. He is also the former head of the National Iranian-American Council, and the author of several books on U.S. and Iran relations.

So good to see you, Trita. So you have expressed --

TRITA PARSI, EXECUTIVE VP, QUINCY INSTITUTE FOR RESPONSIBLE STATECRAFT: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: -- wonderful. You have expressed that the entire world's concern is for 2 million Palestinians trapped in Gaza. There's a palpable fear, I'm quoting you now, "a palpable fear that the conflict will escalate into a regional-wide war." So what will it take for that not to happen at this juncture?

PARSI: I think at this stage, the most likely thing that would trigger an intervention by Hezbollah and Iran and other militias in the region that could bring this to a full-scale war, one that also drags the U.S. into this is if the Israelis go in with a land invasion of Gaza. I think the U.S. side recognizes this. I think there's probably some more pressure privately behind the scenes on the Netanyahu government by Biden, but almost no pressure publicly.

But if that were to happen, and the Iranians and Hezbollah would get involved, we have to recognize that the likelihood of it dragging the United States into it is significant. And it would lead to a situation in which it would not only have a conflict in Ukraine, a potential conflict in Taiwan with China, but then also yet another war in the Middle East. I think the president needs to do everything we can to prevent that scenario.

WHITFIELD: What are those things that the president -- President Biden could do, should do, especially on the heels of his visit to Israel?

PARSI: Well, I think President Biden has tried to make sure that he has as much credibility with the Israelis as possible. The amount of support that he's giving them certainly has given him some political cache. He needs to use that. He needs to call for a ceasefire, for the release of all of the hostages and an end of hostilities and some pathway to a return to the negotiating table.

[11:49:51]

PARSI: That's going to be very, very difficult, particularly the latter part, but the demand for ceasefire is a demand that is coming from almost the entire world at this point.

The U.N. Secretary General has called for it. Some European leaders have called for it. Almost everyone in the Middle East has called for it. And it is not just because of a concern for the Palestinians and the Israelis that will die in such a passage but it's because of the concern that this will lead to a region-wide war if we don't have a ceasefire.

WHITFIELD: All right. All very volatile, all very worrisome.

Trita Parsi, pleasure talking to you. Thank you so much.

PARSI: Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: We'll be right back.

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[11:54:51]

BLITZER: We've been following CNN journalist Ibraham Dahman's escape from northern Gaza for the south with his wife and two sons.

Here's his latest report on the situation in Khan Younis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IBRAHIM DAHMAN, CNN JOURNALIST: The situation in Khan Younis is still the same since we left the hotel. We are still in the same house. At first the house was safe, but since yesterday and the day before

airstrikes and artillery have increased.

Life here is difficult. Water is difficult to get and when we do get it, it's very hard. There is no drinking water.

There are very strong airstrikes and the world is turning into a white cloud.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The people of Gaza and Israel need a lot of aid right now. And if you want to help, go to CNN.com/impact or text "RELIEF" to 707070.

We're following all OF the latest developments out of Gaza right now. 20 trucks carrying water, food and medicine were able to enter the territory earlier today.

CNN's coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas continues right after a quick break.

[11:56:15]

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