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Hamas And Israeli Groups Clash Inside Gaza; Biden Holds Call With Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu And Pope Francis; Detroit Synagogue President Stabbed To Death Outside Her Home. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired October 22, 2023 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:01:02]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone, thank you so much for joining us. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Atlanta alongside Wolf Blitzer in Washington.

Wolf, we'll get to you in a moment.

We begin our special coverage with new developments happening in Israel's war against Hamas and a warning, what you're about to see is graphic.

New action on the ground as Israel Defense Forces say their troops clashed with Hamas fighters inside Gaza. It marks just the second time Israeli forces have confirmed operating inside the enclave since the Hamas terror attack two weeks ago. It has been another violent day across Central Gaza, where a new barrage of Israeli airstrikes hit several targets.

One Gaza hospital saying they are being overwhelmed by the number of bodies. Videos obtained by CNN show dozens of dead people wrapped in shrouds surrounding the hospital. The morgue already filled to capacity.

Israel also launching a rare aerial assault on a mosque in the West Bank. The IDF claims the strike thwarted an imminent terror attack, but the Palestinian Authority calls it a dangerous escalation.

IDF is vowing to increase its aerial bombardment of Gaza ahead of a potential ground incursion against Hamas. With the bloodshed mounting, this afternoon, President Biden held phone calls with Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu and Pope Francis. That call comes as more critical aid appears to be on the way into Southern Gaza. Fifteen trucks carrying food and supplies from Egypt are now being inspected at the Rafah border crossing, just one day after the first convoy was allowed into Gaza.

Wolf, let's send it back over to you.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: All right, Fred, thank you very much. Let's get some more right now. Our team of reporters are covering all of the late breaking developments.

CNN's Alex Marquardt and Priscilla Alvarez are joining us first right now.

Priscilla, what more are you learning about this phone conversation just a little while ago between President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Wolf, this is the eighth phone call the two leaders have had since those attacks on October 7th, and while we're still awaiting a readout from the White House about this call, the two have spoken multiple times, including this past Friday. And in the course of those conversations. The two leaders have talked about the ongoing support by the US to Israel, the fact that the US wants to see that innocent civilians are protected and that humanitarian aid is making its way into Gaza.

Now, just yesterday, the president here in Rehoboth was asked about whether the administration is trying to delay any invasion by Israel, and to that, he said he was talking to the Israelis, so clearly a working weekend here for the president, not the only call of the day.

The president also spoke to Pope Francis today, according to the White House where the two also discussed the situation in Israel and Gaza. White House officials watching all of this very closely and the president himself being briefed regularly by his national security team -- Wolf.

BLITZER: A huge, huge issue, obviously facing the president of the United States.

Alex, there is some question, as you well know, about whether the Biden administration is asking Israel to delay any ground incursion into Gaza, but a senior Israeli official is flatly denying that claim. What more are you learning?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this is a major priority for the Biden administration to get these American hostages out to get all of the hostages out. This is something that the US has asked Qatar to talk to Hamas about, and clearly, the US is encouraged by the fact that these two Americans were released, mother and daughter on Friday, and so, there is hope here in the US, and certainly elsewhere, including Israel that more progress can be made on the hostage front, as well as getting aid into Gaza, which is underway, but it's certainly far from mission accomplished.

[15:05:04]

And so what I'm hearing from different sources is that there has been some pressure from the Biden administration on the Israelis to delay their looming ground incursion into Gaza, to allow for more progress on both those fronts; on the hostage front, as well as on the aid into Gaza.

Now, as you noted, a senior Israeli official has declined or has denied rather, that this is the case, but when you put the question to Biden administration officials, as Priscilla was just noting with the president, but also Secretary Antony Blinken, earlier today, he did not deny that. He said that this is a decision for Israel to make, in terms of the timing of their ground invasion.

But clearly, this is a major concern for the United States. Every time we hear a Biden administration official talking about support for Israel, that is quickly followed by concerns over the humanitarian condition in Gaza, for Palestinians fleeing the fighting, for the aid getting in there and for the hostages -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Alex, also today, the State Department here in Washington ordered all non-emergency US government personnel to immediately leave Iraq. What's happening there?

MARQUARDT: And this follows a very similar warning that we heard from the State Department for Lebanon, and so it reflects this growing concern about potential attacks on US targets in the Middle East, potential attacks against American citizens.

And so right now, the State Department has a Level Four Travel Advisory, that's as high as you can go and the State Department saying, do not go to Lebanon, and now do not go to Iraq. At the same time, families that are associated with those embassies in those two countries are coming home. Non-emergency personnel are leaving as well.

And so what this advisory says is that the US citizens in Iraq face high risks to their safety and security, and this is something we heard from the Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin earlier today, Wolf, that there is the prospect for increasing violence by Iranian proxies against US targets in the Middle East -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And the State Department also issued what's called a worldwide alert for Americans traveling abroad to exercise in their words, increased caution. We're watching all of these developments very closely.

Alex Marquardt, Priscilla Alvarez, guys, thank you very much.

I want to turn right now to CNN's Matthew Chance. He's on the ground in Northern Israel for us.

Matthew, Israeli troops clashed with Hamas today inside of Gaza. First of all, what more are IDF officials saying about this incursion, this skirmish going on inside Gaza?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean, first of all, Wolf, this is not necessarily the start of the big sort of land invasion that everyone has been anticipating and bracing for and for which Israel has deployed tens of thousands, if not more of its troops near Gaza, in order to undertake, but it is an example of the kind of pinpoint operation that Israeli forces have been conducting inside Gaza on the land, of course, backed by those very heavy airstrikes, particularly in the north of the Gaza Strip, as well to try and find information perhaps on the location of the various hostages that are being held by Hamas inside the Gaza Strip.

It also underlines just how hazardous a land operation is going to be inside the Gaza Strip, because with this first confrontation on the ground, between Hamas militants in the Israeli military, we saw at least one Israeli killed, there are others who have been injured, and of course, again, Gaza is an area which has very dense population. It also has very close, tight-knit streets, much of them have been demolished by airstrikes over course of the past couple of weeks.

There's also that network of underground tunnels that has to be contended with, and I don't know exactly what happened today, but you know, undoubtedly, some of those factors came into play, and resulted in at least one Israeli death. And so it sort of indicates just how difficult it's going to be when there is a full scale invasion into Gaza involving a lot more Israeli soldiers -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And on top of all of this, Matthew, there was a rare Israeli airstrike in the West Bank targeting a mosque. What more are officials saying on that front?

CHANCE: Yes. I mean, this airstrike on a mosque, actually in the town, or the city of Jeanine, in the West Bank, I think indicating just how, you know, serious the Israelis are at the moment about tackling militarily, any threat that they detect, and what they say the Israeli military says is that they believe that a terrorist plot was being hatched or being planned from the basement of that mosque.

And so, between that, and including Hamas militants and militants from another Palestinian group called the Islamic Jihad, that they took action to stop that before it took place. That's not the version of events that Palestinian officials are putting out there. They are saying that this was an escalation and they've condemned it. But nevertheless, again, it underlines just how much violence there is at the moment across this entire region.

[15:10:16]

BLITZER: Matthew Chance, stay safe up there in Northern Israel for us. Matthew Chance reporting.

Meanwhile, Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Herzog is standing by live now. He is joining us for a conversation.

Ambassador, thank you so much for joining us. Let's start with the news. CNN, as you know, has learned that US officials are pressing Israel right now to try to delay any full scale ground offensive in Gaza. Would you like to comment on this report?

MICHAEL HERZOG, ISRAEL'S AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES: Yes, that is not true. There is no US pressure on Israel to reconsider or delay the ground operation. We have a very close dialogue between us and close consultations. Many questions come up during these consultations, but as the White House said, and as we said, Israel is a sovereign nation, and they do not ask us or tell us what to do. They understand the situation. So there is no real pressure.

There is a dialogue, all questions come up in this dialogue, they give us advice, but they're not telling us what to do or what not to do.

BLITZER: Well, is the advice to delay a ground invasion? HERZOG: I, again, I'm telling you, the US (AUDIO GAP) operation has to do with -- tactical operation is well in considerations. In the dialogue with US, they raise a lot of questions, but they are not telling us what to do or what not to do and they said as much in their public statements.

BLITZER: So if Israel is unwilling to delay any potential ground defensive inside Gaza, Ambassador, what is the plan to try to get the other hostages and there may be as many as 200 hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza? What's the plan to get the rest of the hostages out?

HERZOG: I'm not going to discuss such plans in public. This is very high on our agenda. We are concerned about the situation of the hostages. We call on the international community to press Hamas to release them unconditionally. We hold them accountable for any harm (AUDIO GAP) that's all I can say at this point.

BLITZER: Why do you think Hamas actually released these two American hostages, a mother and daughter? What did they hope or expect to get in exchange?

HERZOG: Obviously, I think they are concerned about public opinion and what's coming their way, so it is their way to release some pressure to show that they are humane. After all, we've all seen the terrible scenes from the beginning of the war, October 7th, and I think it troubles them and they want to show that they can take care of humanitarian issues.

We welcome the release of any hostage, but we remind everybody that there are over 200 people out there, including women, children, elderly, and sick people.

BLITZER: What is the potential endgame, Ambassador, of an Israeli ground offensive into Gaza? Does Israel have a coherent strategy for what would come next, if it were able to remove Hamas, destroy Hamas, destroy their military equipment, their infrastructure? What would happen in Gaza after that?

HERZOG: Given the fact that Hamas launched an all-out war against the state of Israel, and we've seen what they did, Israel has no option but to go after Hamas and to destroy their military capabilities, and the governance body that directs these military capabilities inside Gaza. That's the goal of this war.

This goal can't be achieved without the ground operation. Now, what would be the end state or the end game? This is something we are thinking about. This is something that we are -- we began discussing with some of our friends (AUDIO GAP) discuss it in public, but it's not something that we neglected or didn't think about. It's very much on our mind.

BLITZER: But you're unwilling to tell us what your preference would be, at least not now, is that right?

HERZOG: All I can say is that we want an endgame without Hamas ruling Gaza and being able to threaten the state of Israel. Where there is Hamas, there is room for discussion and we are entering this discussion.

[15:15:02]

BLITZER: Ambassador, I know this connection is a little upset right now, but is Israel open to allowing a steady stream of humanitarian aid to come into Gaza from Egypt?

HERZOG: Well, this is a second day that humanitarian aid is going from Egypt to Gaza, yesterday and today. So as you can see, we are facilitating that, mindful of the fact that Hamas might want to put its hand on those humanitarian supplies and feed its own war machine, but we are doing it in close coordination with the United States, with Egypt, and with the UN.

BLITZER: The IDF has engaged as you know, with various groups along Israel's northern borders, with both Lebanon and Syria. What's your level of concern right now, Ambassador, about this escalating conflict, moving towards a much wider regional war.

HERZOG: We are watching the situation in the north very closely as everybody knows, in over the -- since we began the war -- since Hamas waged a war against Israel, Hezbollah attacked us, along the Israel- Lebanon border, every day, we have the firing of anti-tank missiles and they also allow some Palestinian factions to take action and infiltrate and attack us.

I think no party wants an all-out war, I believe Hezbollah, it is not in their interest as well, because they know what will be the outcome and what price they're going to pay.

But I take the opportunity to warn that there is room for miscalculation, and things could get out of hand, even though they do not want to engage us in a full scale war. We are very mindful of that situation and we have sent return messages to Iran and to Hezbollah.

BLITZER: And so what do you see as the role of Iran in all of this?

HERZOG: Obviously, Iran is a leader of the so-called resistance axis in which Hamas is a member, Hezbollah is a member, Houthis are a member, so when the Houthis fire rockets obviously, it couldn't have happened without Iranian will, it couldn't have happened without Iran providing them with the weapons and the same for Shiite militias in Syria and Iraq, and the same for Hezbollah.

So obviously, we all understand that the leader of this axis is Iran. It doesn't mean that Iran and Hezbollah want to enter the fray and go into full scale war with Israel or the United States, I don't think so, but they are playing a dangerous game.

BLITZER: Ambassador Michael Herzog, thank you so much for joining us.

HERZOG: Thank you very much, Wolf.

BLITZER: And still to come, protests continue to erupt across the world as the Israel-Hamas war escalates. The Israeli Arab community is reacting to the conflict. That's the next (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:22:12]

BLITZER: Protests over the Israel-Hamas war continue to erupt around the globe. Today in Bosnia, for example, a crowd of thousands of pro- Palestinian protesters gathered in Sarajevo to demonstrate against the violence unfolding in Gaza. A similar March took place in Belgium today, as pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched in front of the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels.

These come after several days of protests with pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators marching in cities and public squares around the world.

I'm joined now by Yoseph Haddad. He's an Israeli Arab activist and CEO of Together Vouch For Each Other.

Yoseph, thank you so much for joining us.

YOSEPH HADDAD, CEO, TOGETHER VOUCH FOR EACH OTHER: Thank you for having me.

BLITZER: First of all, tell us how the Israeli-Arab community is reacting to this conflict with Hamas right now.

HADDAD: I mean, it's very obvious when it comes to the Israeli Arab society, the majority of it took a very solid decision. We are against Hamas, we're against ISIS-Hamas. That's what we are calling them right now because on the 7th of October, we saw the atrocities, the massacre, and the horrific things that the terrorist organization, Hamas, did, and I had some calls with my friends, our friends from Israel, and when we spoke about it, we literally felt that Hamas could have conquered the south and then the center, and also the north of Israel, where the majority of Arab-Israelis are staying and we had a very bad feeling about it.

And immediately, my friend and colleagues here said, that's the last thing that we want. We don't want to live under a terrorist organization. We want to live in a democracy and that's what the state of Israel is. Of course, unfortunately, we have a tiny minority within our society that support Hamas, and we are lucky that the Israeli Police which people need to understand, the Israeli Police have Arabs and Jewish officers in it, and they are dealing with the extremists in the best way that we can do in order to maintain them silent.

BLITZER: I know your organization, Yoseph, Together Vouch For Each Other, works to promote partnerships and tries to bridge the gap between Arabs and Jews. How has this current conflict complicated that relationship?

HADDAD: Here is the thing, it's not, and In fact, it made us more united. I have to even share with you stories that I am not sure that the international media knows that, but for instance, I can give you the name Yusich Zedan (ph) which is -- he is from the -- he is an Arab-Muslim Bedouin Israeli and by himself saved most of the Jews in that massacre that happened in the 7th of October and when he was asked why you didn't escape because bullets were flying all over the place, why didn't you escape?

[15:25:14]

And he answered, and I, again want to make sure everybody understand, he is an Arab-Muslim Bedouin Israeli, he said, I am an Israeli and they were Israelis in there, why would I run? My obligation is to save them. That's a one story.

Second story that I have to do is actually from an Officer H. I can't say his full name, it's classified, but Officer H is actually an Arab- Muslim as well and he managed with a bit of exception, to eliminate a lot of Hamas-ISIS terrorists, because he took his IDF uniform out in order not to expose himself, and then he called them in Arabic to come to him.

He said, (speaking in foreign language) which is "come to me" and once they revealed their hidden place, he eliminated them immediately.

There are countless stories of Arab-Israelis, helping today even civilians, sending supplies from the north, for the soldiers and for the citizens of the north of the south of Israel.

So in fact, people are talking about how is it complicated things between Jews and Arabs, and I will tell you, it's quite the opposite. The relationship between Jews and Arabs in Israel is getting stronger, but also, we must keep looking at the minority extremists, in order for them not to intimidate us.

This is one of the crucial things because I've been working as a social activist with my organization, working on bridging gaps between Jews and Arabs, working on bringing the Arab society closer to the Israeli society for several years.

And time after time, I've been targeted, and I've been stricken by most minority extremists. The only reason why I did not stop is because of what I call the silent voice from the Arab society, which always sent me messages and telling me, you know, Yoseph, we are thinking exactly like you, but we don't have the guts to say it, because of those extremists.

Those extremists are really scary. They threaten your life, they're willing to do things. I got attacked all the way back to Israel from Dubai. And my mom broke her head because of an extremist who have a problem with my views and my activity.

So that's why a lot of the Arab society, a lot of people from the Arab society are scared of them. I'm happy to tell you that step by step we are getting out and many Arab-Israelis after the atrocities that ISIS- Hamas did, they came out and they say to me, Yoseph, please, we want to -- we want our voice to be spread all over the world. And so please use your social media. Here's a video from me, share it with the world, share it with the Arab world. Let the Arab world knows that the Arab-Israelis are not in support of Hamas in any way. Hamas is a terrorist organization, and we need to destroy it as fast as possible. BLITZER: It's so important that what you're doing, Yoseph, thank you so much, and thank your organization as well. Appreciate it very much.

Yoseph Haddad, I appreciate it very much.

HADDAD: Thank you very much for having me.

BLITZER: Still to come -- thank you. A closer look at the devastating consequences of the Israel-Hamas war on children living inside Gaza.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:32:24]

BLITZER: The death toll in Gaza continues to rise as more than 4,600 people have now died in Gaza, that according to the territory's Hamas- controlled Palestinian Ministry of Health, and tragically about 40 percent of that number is made up of children.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh has their story, and a warning to our viewers, some of the images and stories in this report are very graphic and difficult to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE SHOUTING)

(CRYING)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): "Why? Why have you gone, my son?" he wails. "You wanted to be a pilot. You're only sleeping," he says, kissing his boy's lifeless body.

Every day of this war has brought pain, pain no parent wants to ever live through.

Every 15 minutes in Gaza, a child is killed, aid groups say. More than 1,500 children killed so far in a war that's only just beginning, a war they didn't choose, one for which they are paying the heaviest price.

Those who live, haunted by what they've survived. The lucky ones still have parents to hold their hands.

Ten-year-old Abdi Rahman (ph) still doesn't know the strike that left him injured took away his mom, dad and three sisters. His aunt, the only one left to try and comfort him.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

"He wakes up, he cries, they give him painkillers and he goes back to sleep," she says.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

KARADSHEH: "I'm worried about him, the shock when he wakes up and finds out that his mother and father are gone," his aunt says.

"He's the youngest. He was so attached to his parents. He used to play football with his dad. He would go with him everywhere."

Families here say they all heeded the Israeli military's warning and moved south, thinking it would be safe. But it wasn't.

Malik (ph) is injured in the hips and legs. She lost her mother and siblings in an airstrike.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

KARADSHEH: "A girl in the third grade. What did she do?" her aunt asks. "Did she shoot Israelis? She didn't. We're peaceful people in our home," she says. "We didn't launch any rockets or shoot. We didn't do anything."

Nine-year-old Mahmoud (ph) was out playing when his family home was hit. He's in hospital with head and leg injuries.

(UNIDENTIFIED BOY speaking foreign language.)

KARADSHEH: "We were playing in the garden and, suddenly, a missile landed on us," he says. "Trees fell on me. My mother, my father, my brother and grandfather are injured. My uncle brought me unconscious to the hospital."

(CRYING)

[15:35:06]

KARADSHEH: Most of the injured in Gaza, doctors say, are children and women. With no power, no water and medical supplies running out, the health care they need is on the verge of collapse.

Around half of Gaza's population are children. Most have only ever known life under a blockade and war. Now, in this kill box, no place safe from Israel's relentless bombardment.

Desperate for any promise of safety, many have flooded Al-Shifa Hospital grounds.

(SHOUTING)

KARADSHEH: The constant buzz of military drones overhead has become part of existence in Gaza.

(DRONE NOISES)

(CROSSTALK)

KARADSHEH: Some find a little escape from this living nightmare no child should ever endure.

Loujain (ph) and Julia (ph) say their neighborhood was flattened by airstrikes. (LOUJAIN speaking in foreign language.)

KARADSHEH: "We've been living in so much fear, panic and anxiety," she says. "Whenever I hear airstrikes, I don't know what to do. I hug my mom."

(SINGING)

KARADSHEH: Seven-year-old Julia (ph) says she holds her mom, too, and hides. They're now living under the stairs.

(JULIA speaking in foreign language)

KARADSHEH: "I get upset when I see injured here in the hospital," Julia (ph) says. "When I grow up, I want to become a doctor so I can treat them, so they can get better."

It's a war on Hamas, they say, but it is the youngest who bear the brunt. Ensnared in violence they can't control, trapped in this race against death.

Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And thanks to Jomana for that important report.

Coming up, leaving everything behind to work as a medic in the war. Why an Israeli-American doctor is now traveling to Israel to volunteer at a hospital. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:40:54]

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

A 27-year-old Israeli-American medic is risking her life by joining the humanitarian efforts in Israel's war against Hamas.

Kinaret Levin said goodbye to her family and flew to Israel, where she plans to work at a hospital, nursing homes, and hotels to treat some injured Gazans.

CNN national correspondent, Camila Bernal joining me live with more on this.

Camila, so why did Kinaret choose to put her own life at risk?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Fred, she tells me that as an American, this is her way of pursuing justice. She said, even her father didn't want her to go to Israel. She left everything behind at her home in Fredericksburg, Texas. She stopped here in Los Angeles, that's when we were able to talk to her right before going to Israel.

She actually texted us, she is still almost in Israel. She says she'll land in about a half an hour. But she told me, look, as an American again, the only time I've ever felt this way was during 9/11, and she said that she had those feelings all over again, and so she decided that this is what she needed to do. She wants to volunteer her time at these hospitals, even though she does tell me, look, I am scared. I don't know what's going to happen. But I want to help.

Listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KINARET LEVIN, TRAVELING TO ISRAEL TO VOLUNTEER AS MEDIC: Fight doesn't mean being on the frontlines, it also means being in the hospitals, and hoping and talking to people and children who have gone through the most horrible thing that happened. So --

BERNAL: Are you ready to see that?

LEVIN: I don't think anyone's ready. I don't think anyone truly is ready or truly is prepared, but it is a conscious decision that I have made and I will stick through it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: Now she also told me that she's made peace with a number of possible outcomes here. She says that she understands that maybe she won't be able to come back to the US, she could be in the middle of an attack. And she told me, I also know I could face death.

But she says that as long as there is blood running through her body, she wants to be there to volunteer, to do anything she can because she says, look, I can't say in the US. I need to be there and donate as much as I can of my time and of my abilities to help the people of Israel.

But again, she considers herself an American who is there to help the people of Israel -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So Camila, we had said she also wants to treat Gazans. Does she plan to cross into a border and go to the Gaza?

BERNAL: No, she told me that she knows that there's many people from around that area that would go to a lot of the hospitals and a lot of the nursing homes that are taking care of people so she said she's willing to treat and help anyone she can, but no plans as of now of going into Gaza -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Camila Bernal, thank you so much.

BERNAL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, the president of a synagogue in Detroit found stabbed to death outside her home. What we know about the investigation next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:48:16]

BLITZER: Investigators are looking for a motive in the death of a synagogue president. Samantha Woll was found stabbed to death outside her Detroit home. Police say they found a trail of blood leading to her home where they believe the crime happened.

CNN's chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst, John Miller is joining us to discuss.

So disturbing, John. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has assigned Michigan State Police to assist the local Detroit Police and now the FBI is also assisting in the investigation into Samantha Woll's death. What does that tell you?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, not a surprise. You know, Samantha Woll was a well-known and influential figure in the Jewish community of Detroit, personal friends with the attorney general. So they are looking very closely at the obvious burning question, which is, does her brutal murder have anything to do with events unfolding on the other side of the world and calls for violence against Jewish leaders and Jewish institutions?

So far, Wolf, no indication there. You have a crime where she is at her condominium, the LaSalle Condominiums in Lafayette Park, no forced entry, apparently, is what we are told at the scene. The crime occurs inside her apartment and she flees bleeding from the apartment, a trail of blood leads to where her body was found.

So the questions are, was an attacker somebody who pushed in behind her as she came home? Was the attacker already inside the apartment? Was it someone she knew? Was it a stranger?

To put that together, they are going over her cellphone records, looking for a video in the area in a canvas that they hope will show them who was coming and who was going at the time, but so far, nothing to point to any connection to any of the events on the other side of the world.

[15:50:10]

BLITZER: How though do the escalations in Israel right now in Gaza, complicate potentially this investigation?

MILLER: Well, it complicates the tensions in Detroit, which is very much like New York or Los Angeles, which has a large Arab-American community, a large Jewish community, and those tensions are being felt in the streets, especially as we're seeing bombing continue, hostages being held, people being killed.

BLITZER: Let me also ask you about various law enforcement agencies, as you well know, across the country right now being at a higher state of alert for what they call lone offenders inspired by the Israel- Hamas war.

This week, the New York Police Department ordered all officers for example, to report in uniform and be prepared for deployment. So what does that tell you, John?

MILLER: That tells me that law enforcement in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Las Vegas, across the country in the major cities are reacting to the meetings they've been holding with their intelligence commanders trying to assess what is it we have to be ready for?

Certainly, as we saw in New York, over the last hours, protests in the street where there were clashes with police, 22 arrests, with pro- Palestine demonstrators in the Beirut section of Brooklyn, but also being ready for the potential of something happening that is unscheduled.

Hamas has never called for attacks on US soil before, but we've seen a deluge of these threats coming from ISIS, coming from al-Qaeda. Al- Qaeda rereleased every issue of inspire magazine online, these are rife with instructions on how to commit terrorist attacks.

ISIS called for practical ways to support the Palestinian people in their words in articles in their magazine "Al-Naba" by their leader Qureshi talking about attacks on Jewish people, Jewish economic interest, Jewish nightclubs, synagogues across the world.

So police are trying to figure out how to have as many people in uniform, in reserve no matter what their assignment is, in case they have to be called out in the event of either civil disorder or an attack.

BLITZER: John Miller reporting for us.

John, thank you very, very much.

And to Samantha Woll's family, our deepest, deepest condolences, may she rest in peace, and may her memory be a blessing.

Coming up, Hamas fighters and Israeli troops clashing inside Gaza in what appears to be one of the first skirmishes between the two sides on the ground in Gaza since the Hamas terror attacks, October 7th. We'll get an analysis with a former senior US defense official, that's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:57:28]

BLITZER: Hamas fighters clashing with Israeli troops earlier today, this time, inside Gaza. It appears to be one of the first skirmishes between both sides from within the Gaza Strip since Hamas unleashed its deadly terror attacks on October 7th.

I'm joined now by Evelyn Farkas for some perspective, she's a former deputy assistant secretary of Defense, and now the executive director for the McCain Institute.

Evelyn, thanks so much for joining us. What is today's clash inside Gaza between Hamas and Israeli forces signal to you? EVELYN FARKAS, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Yes, I mean, it signals to me what the Israeli said that they are now moving into a new phase of their operation against the Hamas terrorist fighters, and they are going to try to root them out. It doesn't sound like they had tremendous success, at least in this skirmish, but we can expect to see more of this going forward.

BLITZER: Evelyn, why do you believe the US is now pressing Israel to delay a full scale ground invasion into Gaza?

FARKAS: Well, there are several reasons. I think the top reason -- immediate top reason is the fear that the conflict will spread. So as you know, and you and your colleagues have all been reporting, there have been attacks coming -- attacks on Israel coming from the Hezbollah from the north. There is a fear that the Hezbollah fighters might be interested in ratcheting up the pressure that could get Lebanon involved. And again, many other actors then including the United States. So that's number one.

Number two is, you know, and I think you had earlier this morning, you had some excellent people on. General Petraeus, you had Defense minister and then Prime Minister Ehud Barak, they all talked about the fact that there's a lack of a strategy. You need to provide a future, a future vision to the people of Gaza, otherwise, you're going to lose in the long run.

Israel cannot occupy Gaza, so they need to have a transition plan, a political transition plan, and launching into a full scale operation without knowing how it's going to end is very risky.

BLITZER: Are there other lessons Israel can learn from the US conflicts in the Middle East?

FARKAS: Yes, clearly, I mean, when we went into Afghanistan, and certainly in Iraq, we were so heavy handed, and we were not as able to distinguish the good guys from the bad guys and frankly, in our operations, because we were so heavy handed we ended up creating more militants as we were eliminating them.

So you have to be very careful when you're going in to take out the fighters. Israel has to destroy Hamas, destroy the terrorist organization, but it cannot do that and then create a whole another opposition.

So they have to, again, as I said, offer the people of Gaza and frankly, the Palestinian people writ large, a hope for a better future so that maybe they won't turn against Israel and certainly broadening the conflict is very dangerous because the Israeli military is not as strong as it should be at this point in time for various reasons, most of them political.

BLITZER: Evelyn Farkas, thank you very, very much.

FARKAS: Thanks, Wolf.