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Israel Admits Strike on Ambulance Near Gaza Hospital; Some Civilians Leave Gaza as More Wait and Hope; Conflict Sparks Protests, Fear on U.S. College Campuses; Appeals Court Temporarily Freezes Trump Gag Order in Federal Election Subversion Case. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired November 04, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:31]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome to all of you watching us here in United States, Canada, and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. It's 4:00 a.m. here in Atlanta, 10:00 a.m. in Gaza, where Egyptian sources say more than 700 foreign nationals are expected to leave southern Gaza through the Rafah Crossing today.

Among that group were nearly 400 Americans, as well as British, French, German, and Egyptians. Now, this news follows Friday's devastating Israel airstrike outside a hospital in Gaza City. We just want to warn you the video obtained by CNN is graphic.

Now, the Israeli military admits it struck in ambulance just outside the Al-Shifa Hospital. The explosion left a scene of carnage and chaos with a least 15 people reported killed, according to Hamas-run health authorities.

The ambulance was said to be part of a convoy carrying patients to southern Gaza. The IDF says the ambulance was being used by Hamas, which it said was using emergency vehicles to transport fighters and weapons in the past.

Eleni Giokos is following developments for us from Abu Dhabi.

So, Eleni, let's start with that strike on the ambulance convoy. What more do we know?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we know some of the images that we've seen of bodies strewn on the ground. The Hamas lead ministry of health saying that 15 people died, 60 people were injured. This is a convoy according to the Palestinian Red Crescent that was carrying injured patients going from the north, set to go to the south, which of course, is an area where the IDF has consistently said people need to evacuate to.

The International Red Crescent has also specifically said that they knew about this convoy. They weren't involved with this move and the strip down to the south, but they say that even though they weren't directly involved, there is no excuse to specifically target ambulances.

The IDF, of course, saying and reiterating that they've been targeting Hamas operatives and that they have been warning hospitals, of course, that there could be Hamas command centers in and around hospitals. That has been one of the most important lines from them and the international organizations have consistently reiterated that it's almost impossible to evacuate patients from hospitals.

I want to take a listen, there's a look at what the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said to this Israeli strike on an ambulance. And he basically said I'm horrified by the report attack on an ambulance convoy outside al-Shifa hospital. The images of bodies strewn outside on the street are harrowing. Now, for nearly one month, civilians in Gaza, including children and women have been besieged, denied aid, killed and bombed out of their homes. He said that this must stop.

So really something that the U.N. has been reiterating that there needs to be some kind of paused or cease-fire in order for there to be some kind of relief and aid coming in. Antony Blinken, the U.S. secretary of state, was in Israel yesterday. He had a conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And, of course, reiterating the need to ensure that civilians are protected during these strikes.

He also called for some kind of humanitarian pause and for the ability to, you know, start some kind of mediation talks. Benjamin Netanyahu says that this could only be a possibility if hostages are released. And frankly, we've been seeing incessant bombing into Gaza, and the death toll, Kim, consistently rising. It's now above 9,000 people.

BRUNHUBER: All right, Eleni, many calling for a pause to allow aid to get through, but why is such a little aid actually getting through right now?

GIOKOS: Well, initially, we actually saw a major delay coming through from the Rafah border crossing, that is the border that is, you know, next to Egypt. And we saw the lines of trucks and it was just difficult to get aid in. That started opening up since October 7th, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent, they're saying 374 a trucks have entered Gaza. From the aid organizations operating within Gaza, they say it is not nearly enough. On a good day, before the October 7th terrorist attack, we saw 458 trucks coming into Gaza. Now we're seeing a complete deficit on food, on water, on medical supplies.

We're hearing stories coming through from hospitals in terms of the lack of anesthetics to operate on the injured, and really just dire and horrific stories coming through from the ability for hospitals to operate.

[04:05:07]

Now, the issue of fuel is one that is continuing. They're very worried about it ending in the hands of Hamas. But hospitals, in reality, can't operate with fuel. They rely on it to get their generators going, to keep operations up and running. Many hospitals have had to cease operations.

We spoke to UNRWA on CNN a while ago, they're saying they're making very tough decisions in terms of distributing food. And again focus on the need for fuel in hospitals in particular, and for sanitation, and even for desalination to offer clean water to people.

Now, important that you mention this, the Rafah border crossing is going to facilitate the evacuations of foreign nationals, something that has been happening since mid last week. And importantly, this was a Qatari lead deal that was a big breakthrough. We've seen some Palestinian injured patients that have been heading through to Egypt for more medical assistance.

And then, vitally, you got foreign nationals that are starting and continuing to be evacuated. Today, we're hearing from the Egyptians and a source from the Egyptian side, 730 foreign nationals are expected to cross Rafah today.

BRUNHUBER: All right, appreciate the update. Eleni Giokos in Abu Dhabi. Thanks so much.

The White House says the U.S. embassy in Cairo was helped more than 100 U.S. citizens and family members get out of Gaza. The departure, which began on Wednesday, or the first since the war between Israel and Hamas began almost a month ago.

Now, as we just mentioned, in Egyptian source tells CNN that 734 nationals are expected to cross through the Rafah border crossing today, including 386 Americans. Many people are still waiting desperately for a chance to leave.

As Melissa Bell reports, for some, leaving brings a different kind of turmoil.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For nearly a month now, Gaza has been almost entirely cut off. Now, finally, some are getting out, bringing images like these captured on their phones along with their stories.

AMAL KHAYAL, GAZA AREA MANAGER, CISS: I don't think there are enough words in the English dictionary to actually describe what every Gazan is going through right now.

BELL: The pictures of Amal and Jacopo as they got through rough on Wednesday speak of their belief.

As an Italian, he was lucky to be one of the first out as his wife, Amal, was allowed through with him even though she's Palestinian.

KHAYAL: For two days, we were completely blacked out. You could just think of the worst and you keep on telling, we're going to be next. That's what you keep on telling yourself. It's going to be us next, the humanitarian situation is catastrophic.

We can't find water, food, bread. When people go to bakeries, they're freaking die because they have bombed almost all the bakeries in Gaza.

BELL: What difference would a humanitarian pause make? JACOPO INTINI, COUNTY DIRECTOR, CISS: It's not important to reach a

humanitarian pause. An actual cease-fire, prolonged, one with strong conditions.

KHAYAL: A Gazan would say they're giving us some painkillers and then they're going to continue wiping us out. But we will manage to get some water and some food, and then they can just kill us.

BELL: Tell me about the feeling of people inside about that, that sense of what's happening to them.

INTINI: I think the feeling abandoned, that's the issue. Like children who died or like women are delivering, like, in very poor hygienic situations.

KHAYAL: This is so inhuman, and then they come on the news and they tell you Israel has the right to defend itself. Come on. What are we talking about? Come on.

They are wiping us out. We have entire families killed. I'm just wondering what the world is waiting to see so they can actually start doing an action.

BELL: But with no hope in sight, Amal and Jacopo made the hardest of choices, leaving behind an entirely besieged and bombarded Gaza.

Was leaving a difficult decision?

INTINI: Yeah, it was definitely a difficult decision. As an Italian, our role is to stay together with, like, together with the population, like people in need.

So it was so difficult to take this decision, like we cannot operate anymore. The situation wasn't safe anymore for us. So many people are talking about this coming out as a victory for us, but it's not a victory. It's a loss for everyone.

KHAYAL: To be honest, since yesterday, I was already regretting going out because I was -- the entire day, I was unable to reach my family.

[04:10:02]

So I couldn't even tell them that I made it safely and I'm okay. And I know that's -- my mom, she actually begged me to go out. For me, I wouldn't have done it. And I still feel I shouldn't have gone you. You know the survival guilt.

BELL: They say the future is impossible to imagine even as they head to Italy with their heads full of Gaza and their hearts desperate to return.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Cairo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Earlier, our Anna Coren spoke with Tom White, the director of affairs in Gaza for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and he described what he's seen on the ground. Here is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

THOMAS WHITE, DIRECTOR, UNRWA AFFAIRS GAZA: For UNRWA in the shelters we are operating, once again, you know, in the last few days, we've had four of those shelters that have been hit and numerous people killed and injured. So for a lot of people in Gaza, right now it's basically find somewhere that they are safe from the conflict, from these air strikes.

ANNA COREN, CNN ANCHOR: Tom, how much aid is getting in and tell us about your supplies of water, food, medicine?

WHITE: Anna, our supplies are critically low. The reality is that most of the aid that we're pushing out right now is stocks that we already had in Gaza. For example, we were already running a food operation for 1.2 million people prior to the conflict. So we've been drawing down on those stocks.

We are starting to see some aid coming in. It is a very complicated process where all the trucks are screened by the Israelis before they can move in. So the short answer is we are not getting enough aid into Gaza right now. I'd also add that humanitarian aid is not going to fill the gap if the public sector and the private sector collapse here.

To give you an example, you know, all of the sewage pumps out of cities in Gaza, it's done by municipalities. If they run out of fuel, for example, the -- well, the sewage is already starting to flow in the streets.

So it's humanitarian aid. We need to make sure the municipal services continue. And we also need to be working alongside the private sector.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is now in Jordan after visiting Israel. Among the officials that Blinken's meeting with and Jordan is Najib Mikati, the caretaker prime minister of Lebanon. Before he left for his trip, Blinken said he planned to discuss, quote, steps that need to be taken to protect civilians.

Now, that was a top priority when he sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials on Friday. Here is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE: We need to do more to protect Palestinian civilians. Failure to do so plays into the hands of Hamas and other terror groups. There will be no partners for peace if they're consumed by humanitarian catastrophe and alienated by any perceived indifference to their plight.

BRUNHUBER: Blinken still offered support for Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas. And Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen is a member of the foreign

relations committee and one of the lawmakers calling for humanitarian pause. He spoke earlier with our Wolf Blitzer about the need to help the citizens of Gaza. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D-MD): Wolf, we are calling for what Secretary Blinken and, of course, President Biden by extension have been calling for, is a humanitarian pause, which as you said, is simply designed to allow desperately needed assistance, water, food, medicine to the 2 million Gazans, including half of them children, who have nothing to do with the horrible Hamas attacks on Israel of October 7th. That doesn't mean that Israel can't continue to prosecute the war against Hamas, but it does mean take a step, allow the humanitarian assistance to go through, and it is very disturbing that Prime Minister Netanyahu rebuffed directly Secretary Blinken's request while he was there.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: It wasn't just Blinken. President Biden has been saying the stuff like that as well. The secretary of state he's here in Israel. He was here in Israel today saying more must be done to protect innocent Palestinian lives. Is the Biden administration, Senator, pushing Israel, do you believe, hard enough on this issue?

VAN HOLLEN: Well, I think they need to push even harder, Wolf, which is why I was glad that Secretary Blinken was in Israel today, really making that very important point. Everybody recognizes that Israel has the right to defend itself. Everybody recognizes that they have a right to go after Hamas after the horrible attacks of October 7th.

[04:15:05]

And also, everybody recognizes it's hard to do when Hamas hides among civilians. That said, the civilian death toll is unacceptably high. You see these bombs dropped on refugee camps. You now have 70 percent of the casualties and deaths women and children.

And so, Secretary Blinken is absolutely right to say you have to find a better way to prosecute this war against Hamas. And for now, also allow that humanitarian pause so that the 2.2 million civilians who had nothing to do with these attacks are not deprived entirely of water, food, and medicine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The Arab world watches as a leader of Hezbollah makes his first public comments since the start of Israel's war with Hamas. Nasrallah said next on CNN.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: At least two rockets fired from Gaza made a direct hit in the Israeli city of Sderot Friday evening, and one of them fell close to journalists, including our CNN team on the ground. [04:20:08]

Look at this.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

BRUNHUBER: That blast hit a kindergarten courtyard with shrapnel damaging the building and nearby cars. Luckily, no casualties were reported.

Meanwhile, Israeli forces reportedly encircling Gaza city, U.S. officials say they expect the air campaign to subside as IDF soldiers advance.

A closer look now at Israel's evolving military tactics. Retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Davis gave his tank -- his take to our Abby Philip earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN HOST: Why not take a quick look at the Gaza Strip here? This is where we've seen so much activity, especially in the last couple of days. Today, at the al-Shifa hospital down here, then notably, in Jabalia, that refugee camp. If this changes in nature, is that a reflection of Israel being actually concerned that the narrative around civilian casualties is not one that is in its favor?

LT. COL. DANIEL DAVIS, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Well, they need to. I mean, that's a no kidding problem. I mean, you've had about a half a dozen states in just the last 48 hours have to recall their ambassadors. Bolivia actually broke diplomatic relations. It's having a big impact. All of these are coming, especially after the issues of Jabalia, those are getting some of the most horrific scenes.

And everybody understands that Israel was attacked by Hamas terrorists who. Civilians were brutally murdered. Everybody understands you can respond to that, but what they don't understand is that you can't completely put aside, you know, the laws of land warfare and the various things that we say we want to hold other nations to like Russia. They have to follow it, and so do we on our side.

I think that Israel has not been doing that enough and Biden is right, he's going to have to hold him to it.

PHILLIP: Can they feel still accomplish their military objectives by moving back from airstrikes, and maybe this more dangerous conflict? Explain to folks, this is just a picture of where some of the troop activity has been in a northern Gaza. They are surrounding right here. This is Gaza City.

DAVIS: Yes, and what you see here very clearly is there are three main accesses of advance. This one on the coast here, and this other one that's completely cut off down to the coast here. What the purpose of this part is, is to completely block this off and come down here and completely isolated Hamas within Gaza City so that none of that aid can get through, and I'll have to block that off, and the have is contained.

Now, it's a lot easier to just go in and blow up all the buildings and destroy everything where Hamas is, and it's much harder and more expensive on manpower for Israel to go into block by block and house by house and deliver it. That's unfortunately the horrible part of war. You can't just kill citizens, you're going to have to do with the hardware. You're going to want to keep western support.

PHILLIP: We are just listening to the Hezbollah chief talking about what could happen if this becomes a multi front war. Talk to us about what this could look like.

DAVIS: Yeah, what you have here is the big issue here of Lebanon, this northern border right here. That's where you see right now -- one of the things that Nasrallah said, the head of Hezbollah to said today, we've already been in the fight, since the 8th of October. And there's been low-level attacks, I didn't see the count for today. But it's basically within just the border area, and they've not gone further in that.

And so, Israel has not gone further and that. Both want to avoid a big war, and then escalation, and that's one of Blinken's biggest efforts in this visit right here is make sure that that doesn't escalate. That would be the worst thing for Israel and American interests.

PHILLIP: And just a quick note for our audience to understand, Hamas is a much smaller organization here, 20,000 to 25,000 fighters. If we're talking about Hezbollah, this is 50,000, almost twice the size, much more firepower. It could be a much more dangerous front if it does open up for Israel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The leader of Hezbollah says America's fully responsible for the war in Gaza. Hassan Nasrallah reiterated a call for cease- fire, which he said the U.S. is preventing, and that's why Islamic resistance factions are targeting American positions in Iraq.

The Hezbollah secretary general also warned that all scenarios are possible on the border with Lebanon and Israel, where Hezbollah is based. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASSAN NASRALLAH, HEZBOLLAH SECRETARY GENERAL (through translator): The worry is that the possibility of this front actually escalating or going into a fully fledged war or becoming a wider war is a realistic one. It can happen. And the enemy has to make every provision for this. And I'm sure they do make every provision for this.

[04:25:00]

And I'm sure they do think about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BRUNHUBER: Nasrallah said all Israel has done in the last 75 years is, quote, commit massacres, but Israel will not win this time and Gaza will be victorious. Hezbollah is backed by Iran, and has been skirmishing daily with the Israeli military on the Israel Lebanon border.

All right, more to come after a quick break. We'll go along with the survivor of the brutal Hamas massacre at that Nova Music Festival as he returns to the scene for the first time. Stick with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada, and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSOOM.

The U.N. secretary general is condemning an Israeli airstrike targeting in ambulance outside Gaza's largest hospital. Hamas run health authorities say the blast killed 15 people and wounded 60 others. Israel says the ambulance was being used by what it calls the Hamas terror cell. International committee of the Red Cross says the ambulance was part of a convoy carrying wounded patients from northern Gaza to the south.

Meanwhile, the biggest number yet of foreign nationals is expected do exit Gaza into Egypt in the hours ahead. In Egyptian sources, 730 of them will enter through the Rafah crossing, nearly 400 Americans are said to be among them.

Four weeks ago today, the brutal Hamas massacre killed 1,400 people. Among them were more than 260 people slaughtered at the Nova Music Festival in southern Israel.

CNN's Nic Robertson speaks to a survivor and walks with her as she returns to the scene for the first time since October 7th.

[04:30:01]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Aliza Samuel is trying to be brave. For the first time, the 24-year- old is back to where her friends were brutally slaughtered terrain Hamas's murderous music festival rampage, October 7th.

ALIZA SAMUEL, FESTIVAL MASSACRE SURVIVOR: Peoples bracelets are here.

ROBERTSON: The bracelets from the festival? There's another one here.

Four weeks later, fear still scattered in the fields.

SAMUEL: People's bags, everybody dropped everything and laughed.

ROBERTSON: She is struggling.

SAMUEL: I don't want to walk further. DR. SHLOMO GENSLER, FIRST RESPONDER ON OCTOBER 7: I think Gaza strip

down that way.

ROBERTSON: Getting this far has been made easier by the help of her cousin, Dr. Shlomo Gensler, one of the first emergency medics send to the attacks.

GENSLER: First casualty was right by the drain point.

ROBERTSON: He, too, for the first time since, revisiting the terrors of that day.

GENSLER: We shot in the back of the head plaza bunch of places in the back of his body. He also was shot, oh, interesting, you can actually see the bullets still. This is actually crazy. Wow. There was a ton of shell casings lane all around.

ROBERTSON: Just as we're about to move on.

Is that a siren?

An incoming rollover rocket morning.

Aliza is visibly shaken.

GENSLER: We'll get in the car, and will continue down. Okay?

So sorry. It's reliving it for you, yeah?

ROBERTSON: So sorry, are you okay?

SAMUEL: Yeah.

GENSLER: For her, it's extremely traumatizing because part of where this whole thing how it's started with her --

ROBERTSON: Was a rocket attack.

GENSLER: -- was being at this party and the rocket attacks started like that. And here in this, but not knowing what was going to come. So for her to go through this again is extremely, extremely scary we. It's crazy, because it's still very real. Now that I'm seeing those bullets, they were never cleaned up, and that's -- still feeling that level of insecurity here.

ROBERTSON: We met Dr. Gensler soon after the attack, still treating patients. A month later, he's helping his family heal.

GENSLER: The people that are close to you that you love. You see them struggling, and that's very painful.

SAMUEL: I think it's important for me to come back because I think to help me move forward. It's not easy, and it's not going to be easy. It needs to be done.

GENSLER: This is where it started to get even more real. ROBERTSON: Dr. Gensler needs him closer. We stop again. More trauma relived.

GENSLER: We had tweeted a bunch of people that there were a few soldiers that came out, came out this way. And over here, there was one soldier --

ROBERTSON: If you look, there is still medical equipment lane here, from that day.

GENSLER: This is definitely from that day.

ROBERTSON: This is incredible. Wherever we are going, almost four weeks later, it's not changed. Everything is still a line around.

GENSLER: Yeah, it's surreal. I'll be honest, coming here, I feel a strong emotion because I'm reliving what I saw.

ROBERTSON: His colleagues say he is a hero, saved dozens of lives that night. He says he was just doing his job. And wishes all the innocence suffering on both sides of the border was over.

GENSLER: I cry about the kids in Gaza that are suffering and didn't make the choices that some of these Hamas terrorists did. It bothers me. It tremendously bothers me. And it hurts to know that there are kids that are suffering as a result of it.

ROBERTSON: A few more miles, he gets us to the festival site. Aliza recognizes it immediately.

SAMUEL: These are the trees that we hidden.

ROBERTSON: We stop. She leads us into the bushes.

So this is where you hid?

SAMUEL: It was right in there.

ROBERTSON: You were hiding in here?

Oh my goodness.

SAMUEL: We saw everything. I saw people get shot, lined up, friends of mine. They were lined up and I saw one of my friends, she was begging for her life. She was 20 years old and she was begging for her life. She asked them to not kill her, did not kill, or to not killer. And they didn't care, they were laughing.

ROBERTSON: Hiding for almost three hours in absolute fear for their lives.

[04:35:01]

SAMUEL: My friend, I had to come all the way over here to hold her mouth shut. Like literally, to gag her, because I couldn't let her make noise, because you make noise, you are dead. You are killed or taken kidnapped.

ROBERTSON: Hour after hour, witnessing murder after murder after murder.

SAMUEL: I saw the Hamas take a bunch of people, and went to their commander and asked whether to kill them or take them. And he said to kill these people and take these people. And they shot them right there. And once they were dead, they didn't stop. They just kept shooting them and you saw the body jump and jump and the bullets, after they were dead.

ROBERTSON: She is here to help with her recovery, but returning has broad everything flooding back.

SAMUEL: Sitting here right now, I hear, I hear everything. I hear the screaming, I hear the bikes and I hear the gunshots. Hearing the gunfire, hearing everything, hearing people crying for their life, to save their life, to give them just a few more days, just to go to see their family again.

ROBERTSON: Eventually, she gets the courage to get a closer look.

SAMUEL: But look, look how many things there are here.

ROBERTSON: Most everything where it was dropped.

GENSLER: Where was your tenth?

SAMUEL: Over there. More down there.

SAMUEL: We can set up camp here.

I remember this, this white thing.

ROBERTSON: The white one here? You remember that one?

SAMUEL: Yeah, we always made fun of it.

ROBERTSON: At least you know how to get back to your tent.

SAMUEL: That's exactly why we did it, because we needed a place to remember. I think it's right next to there.

ROBERTSON: It's the first time we see her smile, but it's fleeting.

SAMUEL: I'm going to come out of this stronger, and all the survivors are going to have a story to tell. And they should tell it. And no matter how painful it is, they should tell it because this is something that the world needs to know.

ROBERTSON: Nic Robertson, CNN, Re'im, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:40:08]

BRUNHUBER: College campuses in the U.S. have a long history of being hives of political activism, especially during times of conflict.

CNN's Elle Reeve spoke to students at the universities to find out how they feel about on campus protests in the midst of the Israel-Hamas war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the river to the sea --

STUDENTS: From the river to the sea --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- Palestine will be free.

MALAK ABUHASHIM, STUDENT, CORNELL UNIVERSITY: I'm Palestinian. I have family in Gaza. So this has been an issue that's affected me my entire life. Like, I'm calling them and there's bombs in the background. They need to go somewhere safe.

ZOE BERNSTEIN, STUDENT, CORNELL UNIVERSITY: I have a lot of family and friends in Israel just having so much hate thrown at and so much misinformation as well about what's going on just shared on campus and on social media has been challenging.

ELLE REEVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's tension at hundreds of colleges across the U.S.

At Tulane, a fight broke out after someone tried to burn an Israeli flag. At Harvard and Columbia, a doxing truck showed up on campus naming students who allegedly belonged to organizations that released an anti-Israel statement.

EVE M. TROUTT POWELL, MIDDLE EAST HISTORY PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: I'm shocked at the temperature on campus. I could never have imagined it would be like this. There's a level of -- I don't want to say hatred but anger and fear.

BENI ROMM, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: The AEPi, the Jewish fraternity, was hit with a graffiti attack of "The Jews are Nazis" earlier this weekend.

REEVE: CNN visited three campuses where the response to the war has had major consequences -- the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel, where students were part of a nationwide walkout in support of Palestine; and Cornell, which this weekend faced antisemitic threats.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was on my way to the kosher dining hall when I looked down and saw the threats.

REEVE: How did you feel?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, it's terrifying. Like, this isn't -- this isn't anything that we thought we would ever have to deal with in the United States. REEVE: The posts on a Greek life website threatened to shoot up a kosher dining hall and kill Jewish students. They were signed "Hamas soldier." But on Wednesday, Patrick Dai, a 21-year-old Cornell student, was arraigned on a federal charge for making online threats.

BERNSTEIN: I think that the quick response by the university really did quell a lot of students' fear. I know a lot of people are choosing to do Zoom options for their classes. They're asking for special accommodations because they just don't want to put themselves at risk.

REEVE: What did you think when these antisemitic threats were posted online?

ABUHASHIM: I think those were very hateful things to say. It's very disturbing to see such hateful comments being made in the name of Allah. I feel like that's very disrespectful. Antisemitism will never be accepted in our movement. And hateful comments such as these, whether they be Islamophobic, et cetera, have no place on our campus or anywhere, really.

REEVE (voice-over): Abuhashim is the head of Cornell's Students for Justice In Palestine, a group whose national chapter has drawn a ton of criticism for saying the Hamas attack was a historic victory. And some other college chapters have posted images of paragliders. But Abuhashim says her group acts independently and she doesn't get talking points from the national chapter.

ABUHASHIM: Cornell SJP -- we make statements based on what our students are feeling and what needs to be said. Just having that equal treatment from administration.

REEVE: Some Muslim students say they're frustrated they're constantly asked to denounce Hamas. That it's a distraction from their message about Palestinians.

There is a lot of concern that pro-Palestinian students are pro-Hamas and pro-terrorist tactics.

MOMODOU TAAL, PHD STUDENT, CORNELL UNIVERSITY: Yeah. Yeah.

REEVE: -- going all the way up to the national politicians.

TAAL: Yeah.

REEVE: Is that true?

TAAL: Absolutely, not true. My condemnation is inconsequential. I think it's quite racist and Islamophobic that before I'm allowed to have a view on genocide I have to condemn a terrorist organization.

REEVE: But is it so hard to say, like, yeah, I condemn Hamas?

TAAL: But what does that do? Why is there immediate association I support Hamas? I can say clearly, categorically, I abhor the killing of all civilians no matter where they are and who does it.

I don't go around asking white people do you condemn the KKK. Why is the assumption that you support the KKK in the first place?

STUDENTS: From the river to the sea --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Palestine will be free.

REEVE: "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," heard in many campus protests, has become a lightning rod.

YOUSSEF RAFEH, STUDENT, DREXEL UNIVERSITY: A free Palestine is when Palestinians can live with food, water, electricity, and have the equal rights that all humans deserve.

SEAN, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: You're completely ignoring the fact the people chanting that have lost all their family members. Have had neighborhoods wiped out.

REEVE: Many Jewish student leaders see the chant as a threat -- a call for Jewish genocide in Israel.

BERNSTEIN: From the river to the sea -- the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea -- Palestine will be free. Free of what? Free from who?

What will happen to the people who live there? That, to me, sounds like a call for genocide or an ethnic cleansing, and that really does terrifying me, honestly.

ROMM: Chanting slogans of "from the river to the sea" and intifada, right, is never going to invite a conversation with Jewish students of hey, look at me -- I'm also experiencing and suffering as a result of the events in Israel.

[04:45:07]

STUDENTS: Free, free Palestine.

TAAL: What "from the river to the sea" means is that Palestinians will live freely in that region away from secular violence. That's not calling for the extermination of Jewish people.

STUDENTS: From the river to the sea --

POWELL: This organization, it works two ways. I mean, I don't hear people talking about Israeli violence pre-October 7. I'm not hearing it. If the term makes you uncomfortable, then ask why it makes you uncomfortable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is violence being inflected on Palestinians.

REEVE: The students at the heart of this remain proud of who they are.

TAAL: In my lifetime, it may never change, but I feel encouraged. At the end of the day, I feel like we are on the right side of history and I can go to bed quite comfortably. BERNSTEIN: I'm very, very proud to be a Jewish student on this campus. Seeing the resiliency of community and seeing the unity of my community, it really has only strengthened me and my pride since October 7, and I hope that will continue for a very, very long time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Three university students penned in opinion essay in the New York Times entitled what is happening on college campuses is not free speech. And it, the students write in part, quote, although one may think antisemitism has an impact only on, history shows it poison society at large. Universities have a moral responsibility to counter hateful violence in all its forms. And when they failed to do so, they fell us all.

CNN's Laura Coates spoke with the authors of that op-ed about how they would like to see things change. Here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TALIA DROR, CORNELL UNIVERSITY STUDENT: Open discussion is really the way to further educational goals, rather than intimidation.

LAURA COATES, ANCHOR, "LAURA COATES LIVES": Gabriel, on that point, when we talk about open discussion, this has been quite a minefield for a lot of people to try to, on the one hand, climb a very steep learning curve, in a relatively short amount of time, to understand the nuance of what has transpired over decades and generations. Let alone the horror of what has happened since and on October 7th.

What are you finding have been the most helpful types of conversations to have?

GABRIEL DIAMOND, YALE UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I think there's two types of conversations that we need to be having. I think the first is within the Jewish community and talking about how we can really come together. And I think I've seen a lot of campuses that Jewish students and faculty are really coming together to show support and unity.

And I think the other conversations we have to be having our across the aisle, across with non-Jewish people, with people who we disagree with, and really trying to actually learn from one another. And this is the purpose of a university, right? It's to learn and to challenge your mind and to learn to think.

And right now, we're seeing that students are unable to do this because there is a culture of intimidation. And on some kid campuses, even escalated into violence, and incitement to violence.

COATES: Jillian, we have heard people say that they are shocked at the temperature on campus. That what's happening is perhaps a tragic microcosm of what might be happening more broadly. Are you shocked? Or did you feel a lot of this beforehand on your campus?

JILLIAN LEDERMAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I think we're all shocked. I think that in the wake of what happened on October 7th, a lot of us were expecting this to be a moment of moral clarity where there was a tragedy that occurred that was inflicted by terrorists against Israeli civilians, and that the entire world would come together to condemn what happened. But we're seeing on campuses across the nation is the very opposite of that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: It's not just one community feeling the effects of the anger around the Israel-Hamas war. Maya Berry, the executive director of the Arab American Institute, says hate is rising across the board. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYA BERRY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ARAB AMERICAN INSTITUTE: We've seen in increase in both antisemitic incidents and anti-Muslim, anti Arab, regrettably anti-Black, every single category one can think of, we've been having record-breaking years in terms of hate crimes in this country. We have to understand that's the context in which this latest episode of violence breaks out. And now, we have what we term the backlash effect, which is events that are happening somewhere else in the world tend to kind of seep into our lives here in a way that's really, very harmful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: All right. Still ahead, a judge gives Donald Trump the go- ahead to speak freely about the federal election subversion trial against him. For now, details coming up on CNN NEWSROOM. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:53:41]

BRUNHUBER: In Nepal, a strong earthquake has killed at least 129 people and injured 140. And officials expect the death toll to rise. U.S. Geological Survey reports the quake was a magnitude 5.6, with the epicenter in the western region of the country. People felt the tremors as far away as the capital of Kathmandu, about 500 kilometers, or 300 miles from the center. Nepal's prime minister visited the area near the epicenter and spoke with a number of victims. India's prime minister is expecting his condolences for the earthquake victims.

An appeals court has issued a temporary freeze on a gag order that kept Donald Trump from speaking out about his federal election subversion case. The former president can now publicly criticize possible witnesses in the criminal case.

Paula Reid has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: In just over two weeks, a three-judge panel here in Washington will hear arguments about whether or not this gag order is constitutional. And while that is pending, the former president is not subject to these specific restrictions.

Now, Judge Tanya Chutkan, the judge overseeing the election subversion case here in Washington, the case filed by Special Counsel Jack Smith, she imposed these restrictions at the request of prosecutors. Most defendants know they are not supposed to attack witnesses or go after the prosecutor, but the special counsel's office asked for a broader set of restrictions on Trump after he made a series of statements appearing to attack the judge, witnesses, and prosecutors.

[04:55:11]

Now, his lawyers have argued that these restrictions are unconstitutional, that they violate his First Amendment, but Judge Chutkan has said that Trump's First Amendment rights must yield to the orderly administration of justice. She points to the fact that she has a trial to put on, and these restrictions are essential to protecting people, she says, who are just trying to do their jobs.

Now, this case will be heard before two judges appointed by former President Barack Obama and one judge appointed by President Joe Biden. Again, that argument will happen later this month. It's unclear when we could get an answer, but this question about whether you can restrict the speech of a presidential candidate who is a criminal defendant across multiple jurisdictions -- this is something that the courts just have never contemplated before, and it could possibly wind up at the Supreme Court.

Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Courts in Colorado and Minnesota hearing lawsuits aimed at keeping Donald Trump of the 2024 presidential ballot in those states. On Friday, witness testimony wrapped up in Colorado and Denver just recorded set to hear closing arguments on the 15th of this month.

The lawsuits say the former president is ineligible to hold office under the 14th Amendment because of his attempts to overthrow the 2020 election. One of the sticking points in both cases whether enforcement falls on the courts or on the Congress.

All right, that wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. Please do stay with us.

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