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Video, Witnesses: Multiple Strikes In Deir al-Balah, Gaza; U.N. Official: Gaza Can't Be Helped Under These Conditions; Senate Democrats Set Up Procedural Vote For Ukraine Aid. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired December 06, 2023 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead here on CNN Newsroom, Israel's ground offensive rolls into southern Gaza, with major operations against Hamas underway in the city of Khan Yunis.
Desperately needed U.S. financial aid for Ukraine still in limbo, held hostage by Republicans in Congress demanding tougher immigration laws.
And guess which year is the hottest in human history? Here's a clue. The same one we've had the hottest June on record, the hottest July, the hottest August, the hottest October and also the hottest November.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Israel's ground offensive has now moved into southern Gaza and the territory's second biggest city of Khan Yunis, which Israeli forces say is now surrounded. A senior IDF commander has described ongoing fighting as the most intensive since ground operations began in late October. Israeli airstrikes have also continued targeting Hamas tunnels and rocket launchers.
In central Gaza, the Palestine Red Crescent says a video shows an ambulance fleeing the scene of an artillery fire. Eyewitnesses report multiple strikes. And the nearby hospital says it received 90 bodies on Tuesday alone. Spokesperson for the Palestine Red Crescent says many people are being trapped under rubble, and he's appealing to the world to end the fighting and allow more medical supplies into Gaza.
Meantime, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected an international force responsible for security in Gaza once the war is over. He says only the IDF can control and disarm Hamas in Gaza.
The Biden administration publicly says, Israel is heating U.S. warnings to limit civilian casualties in this renewed offensive. But privately not everyone in the White House sees it that way. One senior official says there is concern about Israel's military campaign now ongoing in the South. Details from CNN Jeremy Diamond.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Israeli military pushing deeper into southern Gaza, now on the brink of what could be a decisive battle in Gaza's second largest city.
HERZI HALEVI, CHIEF OF GENERAL STAFF, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (through translator): Our forces are now encircling the communist area in the southern Gaza Strip. We have secured many Hamas stronghold in the northern Gaza Strip. And now we are operating against its strongholds in the south.
DIAMOND (voice-over): Israeli military officials and local accounts describing intensive Israeli airstrikes in southern Gaza, as satellite imagery obtained by CNN shows dozens of Israeli armored vehicles on the outskirts of Khan Yunis with tracks on the ground indicating an Israeli pushed from the east.
The new offensive worsening an already desperate humanitarian situation. New Israeli evacuation orders in southern Gaza are pushing hundreds of thousands of civilians to move even further south to the city of Rafah, where U.N. official says the U.N. is not able to provide for hundreds of thousands of new internally displaced people.
In the city of Deir al-Balah, nearby artillery fire, forcing an ambulance to flee the scene. And new images of destruction from multiple strikes in the same city killing scores of people, according to a spokesperson for a nearby hospital. These were the latest strikes resulting in apparent civilian casualties. As a report said, the Israeli military assesses about two civilians have been killed for every dead Hamas fighter prompting this response from an Israeli military spokesman.
LT. COL. JONATHAN CONRICUS, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES SPOKESPERSON: If you compare those -- that ratio to any other conflict in urban terrain, between a military and a terrorist organization using civilians as their human shield and embedded in the civilian population, you will find that that ratio is tremendous, tremendously positive and perhaps unique in the world.
DIAMOND (voice-over): As it pushes south, the Israeli military says it is going after top Hamas commanders including the group's leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar.
HALEVI (through translator): Many asked about the destruction in Gaza. Hamas is the address. Sinwar is the address.
DIAMOND (voice-over): But amid the southern offensive, the Israeli military reporting intense battles with Hamas militants in the north, where the fight for control is far from over. Israel's Prime Minister already thinking ahead to when it is.
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BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): On the day after, Gaza must be disarmed and in order for Gaza to be disarmed there's only one force that can ensure that and this force is the IDF. DIAMOND (voice-over): Raising the specter of Israeli forces remaining in Gaza after the war.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Sderot, Israel.
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VAUSE: Along with the surging death toll in Gaza, the renewed Israeli military offensive continues to cause unprecedented destruction. Hamas government officials say since the start of the war, more than 60 percent of all homes in Gaza have either been destroyed or damaged, leading to overcrowded shelters and a growing risk of a major outbreak of disease. And U.S. State Department concedes humanitarian supplies entering Gaza are completely inadequate.
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MATTHEW MILLER, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: We do not want to see this campaign conducted in the south the way it has been conducted in the north. There is not enough being done right now. The level of assistance that's getting in is not sufficient. It needs to go up. And we've made that clear to the government of Israel. The level of fuel that is going in is not sufficient. It needs to go up. And we have made that clear to the government of Israel.
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VAUSE: For more now on life and mostly death in Gaza, here is CNN's Ben Wedeman. A warning, his report contains disturbing images.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They came here hoping to escape the war. And this is what happened. Tuesday afternoon, an apparent Israeli airstrike demolish this building in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza. Civilians more than 50 are now martyr says Abubesin (ph). The building's owner had given them shelter. They all came from the north.
Under the sand and the rubble is a lifeless body. There's his head, someone says. While others peering into the ruins search for survivors. Is anyone alive, he calls out. Without heavy equipment, bare hands of a suffice.
At Deir al-Balah is only functioning hospital. The injured are rushed inside. The hospital spokesman says, they received more than 130 injured in more than 90 bodies. CNN cannot confirm the death toll. Once again, so many of the victims are children. Stunned, confused, terrified, she grasps her mother's hand. The injured treated on the floor.
The lucky are among those who fled and then fled again further south, end up in places like this makeshift camps devoid of running water, electricity or sanitation. A plastic sheet is all that protects Anes Musla (ph) and her family from the elements. We spend all night hearing rockets and bombs, she says. We're living between life and death. We may die at any moment. Indeed, in Gaza now, the line between life and death is perilously thin.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A convoy of 50 trucks carrying humanitarian supplies and fuel crossed over from Egypt into Gaza, Tuesday. The U.S. Agency for International Development also announced another $21 million for Gaza following an initial allotment of $100 million announced by the U.S. president back October.
The agency says the funds will provide displaced residents with food, shelter, health services as well. Another organization, the Norwegian Refugee Council was forced to halt nearly all aid operations in Gaza, citing the pulverizing of the Gaza Strip.
Live through Jerusalem, Shaina Low, communication adviser for the Norwegian Refugee Council is with us. Shaina, thank you for taking the time to speak with us.
SHAINA LOW, COMMUNICATION ADVISER, NORWEGIAN REFUGEE COUNCIL: Good morning.
VAUSE: So during an interview with "The Guardian," Martin Griffiths, the U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator says, he was speaking on behalf of the entire international aid community saying there is simply no alternative right now to anything short of an immediate and sustained ceasefire in Gaza, unless happening she says, it isn't really a statistically significant operation anymore. This is the aid supplies going into the aid organizations. It's a bit of a patch on a wound, and it doesn't do the job. And it would be an illusion for the world to think that the people in Gaza can be helped by the humanitarian operation under these conditions.
So basically, he said there's really at this point, there's no point in actually going on with this. Is that why your aid group has essentially suspended operations as well, it's just ineffective?
LOW: Not only is it ineffective at this point, because the needs are so immense and so great. But logistically under such circumstances, it's impossible. We are cut off from aid that we have stored in warehouses in the middle area and cannot access it. We cannot access aid in our warehouse in the narwhal (ph) warehouse where we have it stored in Rafah because there are tens of thousands of people outside seeking assistance. And we cannot safely access the aid and distribute it in a way that wouldn't call -- feed the chaos that is in the streets.
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We cannot even provide food and shelter for our own staff, we have staff members sleeping on the street right now, including one with a two-month-old baby, because we simply are unable to deliver an effective response not just to the 2.3 million people in Gaza, including 85 percent of whom are displaced, but even to our own staff. The trickle of aid that's been coming in is nowhere near enough to support the needs of people. And it's impossible to deliver that limited amount of aid under bombardment, ongoing hostilities and the increasing chaos on the streets of Gaza as people panic.
VAUSE: And just pick up, let's say, that Martin Griffiths says it's almost always that sort of counterproductive at the moment, these, you know, aid operations, you know, in name only, he'll believe that it's underway and everything's fine when the reality is completely and totally the opposite of what that is.
LOW: Absolutely, we don't want and we've seen the Israeli government, promote on their Twitter accounts, that they are helping with the humanitarian response, they are helping with the delivery of aid, that's not true. They have restricted the amount of aid that's been able to go in. They have refused to open their crossings, which are more suitable for the crossings of goods and have the equipment needed to do effective and quick scanning of those goods to ensure that aid is going in.
And at the same time, they continue to bombard this tiny strip of land that is incredibly densely populated, where people have been forced to run from place to place seeking shelter. It's simply is chaos at this point. And we cannot continue to go on with this charade, that the aid that we are providing is making a significant impact. It simply isn't.
VAUSE: Were you surprised how quickly the IDF operations in Gaza ramped up in intensity of that seven day long pause, especially after all the warnings from the United States that Israel shouldn't repeat the first seven weeks of the war?
LOW: You know, honestly, I was not surprised by the intensity of what happened after the collapse of the pause last week, Israel had been indicating for weeks that they were planning and have even said, you know, we will resume our operations and they will get a thumping unlike they've already seen, they're doing that. That's what exactly what's happening.
They told us they were going to have a ground operation in the south, extend their ground operation to the south. They've done that. I think we need to take the Israelis at their word at this point when they say that they're going to intensify an already intense and unrelenting theories of attacks.
And so -- go ahead.
VAUSE: Sorry, just part of the effort so to reduce civilian casualties, and this is one of the results we're told of U.S. pressure on Israel, as these orders were evacuations of specific neighborhoods ahead of IDF operations. A lot of people are critical of that, from your perspective, have they been effective?
LOW: Not only are these not effective, but they're violate the amount of violations of international humanitarian law. Evacuations for them to be lawful must be carried out in an orderly way. People must have guarantees and assurances of their safety as they are fleeing. They must have safe places to flee to. There are no safe places inside of Gaza. And in addition, they must have assurances that they'll be able to return home once hostilities have ended.
None of those conditions have been met. And we have been warning for two months since October 13th when Israel issued its first directive calling on people to leave northern Gaza and head south that this was unlawful and we continue to raise issues and alert the international community that these so called evacuation orders are not evacuation orders, and indeed are violations of international law.
VAUSE: Shaina, thank you for getting up early. Thank you for being with us. We really appreciate your time. Shaina Low there, Norwegian Refugee Council, thank you.
Well, we're learning more about what some former hostages say they endured while in Hamas captivity. And the Israeli health ministry officials says some would give an anti-anxiety medication to improve their mood as they're being released. Israeli public broadcaster, Channel 12, has obtained audio of a private meeting between former hostages and Israel's security cabinet.
Among the testimony, I was dehydrated for 51 days. They didn't give us water. They are inhumane. They told us, there is no Israel, we believed them. They made us believe there is no Israel anymore and I thought I was going to die. I wanted to be shot.
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Coming up here on CNN, U.S. Republican lawmakers standing firm against approving more financial assistance to Ukraine. Forget about democracy, defending Europe against Russia. They want their demands to be met first.
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VAUSE: Russian President Vladimir Putin will spend Wednesday in the Middle East where he'll discuss oil output as well as the Israel-Hamas war. A busy week for the Russian president, the Kremlin says he will also host Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, in Moscow, Thursday.
The Pentagon has warned it will soon be unable to sustain current levels of military assistance to Ukraine. President Joe Biden is pushing forward a new aid package but it's now in limbo in Congress because of Republicans who is stonewalling. CNN's Manu Raju has the explanation.
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ukraine aid and Israel aid stalled at this critical time despite the pleas by American allies for new money to help with those two wars, uncertain if that will be resolved this year are punted into the New Year as the major division between the two parties continues to exist, namely over a separate issue, dealing with the southern border.
The migrant crisis, a surge at the southern border, Republicans want tighter policies on immigration to be part of their larger deal to deal with immigrating in Israel as well as Ukraine. They say, all that needs to be tied together and all the consent particularly when it comes to Ukraine. So when it behind closed doors earlier on Tuesday, when Senate senators all met with administration officials who are trying to lay out an urgent case to approving Ukraine aid. Instead, it broke out into a fight over border security and immigration policy, which led to a shouting match of sorts.
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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), DEMOCRATIC LEADER: It was immediately hijacked by Leader McConnell. And even one of them started was disrespectful and started screaming at the gen -- one of the generals and challenging him to why he didn't go to the border.
SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): We want to help Ukraine and Israel but we've got to have the Democrats recognize that the trade here, the deal is we stop the open border. They don't want to do that. So Republicans are just walking out of the briefing because the people there are not willing to actually discuss what it takes to get a deal done.
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RAJU: But amid this stalemate, Democrats are still trying to press ahead and setting up a key procedural vote to move forward on this big aid package. But because it does not have those tighter immigration policies that Republicans want and Democrats say is simply a non- starter. This means that Republicans are poised to block it, which means that aid to Ukraine, aid to Israel will continue to be stalled hanging in the balance amid this bitter partisan feud over immigration.
Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Joining us now is retired U.S. Army Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, CNN military analysts and former commanding general U.S. Army Europe and 7th Army.
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Let's kick off with all sausage making and political deal making, two things that it's best to not know what goes into the process. But here's a glimpse of what happened Tuesday in terms of politics on Capitol Hill, over aid for Ukraine. Listen to this.
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SCHUMER: Immediately hijacked by Leader McConnell. Then when I brought up the idea that they could do an amendment and have the ability to get something done on border, you know, they get stuck -- they got stuck, they didn't like it. And even one of them started was disrespectful and started screaming at then gen -- one of the generals and challenging him to why he didn't go to the border.
SEN. KEVIN CRAMER (R-ND): People got up and walked out, because this is -- it's a waste of time. They just said, this isn't worth it. This is a joke. You're not serious about this. I'm going. You know, they're -- and I don't blame them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: You know, in ideal world domestic politics, we have no impact on foreign policy. Sadly, that's not the case. It really is. But is there any objective argument that cutting all assistance to Ukraine and the U.S. involvement would actually be a net positive for the United States?
LT. GENERAL MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: None whatsoever. John, when I'll tell you is, you know, a nation's values normally drives a nation's policies which drives a nation strategy. So when you're talking about the values of what we're seeing in Ukraine, a sovereign country, a nation that has territorial boundaries, that has been invaded by another nation that interferes with their conduct of their government, it would seem to me that the United States values says that's not right.
The freedom and democracy is an important thing for all nations. And we should stand up for that, especially the point about the fact that Ukraine has so many connections with the United States, going back to several accords, where we promised to help them with security. Once they gave up some of the things that they had during the period, they were part of the Soviet Union. So, no, this would be a violation in my view of our values. But it's also something that would be a portrayal of another country, on the world stage by United States policymakers.
VAUSE: I want to hear from Democratic Senator Michael Bennet, he talks about what you mentioned there in terms of democratic values, what the U.S. stands for. He was speaking to CNN just a few hours ago. Here he is.
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SEN. MICHAEL BENNET (D-CO): That this democracy can't get its act together. That's going to send a horrible message to Putin. I think Putin thinks he's losing on the battlefield to Ukraine -- of Ukraine, the Ukrainian battlefield. And he's counting on winning on the Capitol Hill battlefield. And we just can't let this happen. And I don't think we will.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: I want to pick up on that last point, is Putin actually losing on the battlefield, it seems Ukraine's counter-offensive has stalled and isn't really going anywhere right now.
HERTLING: Well, but Ukraine has had significant gains in terms of their defense and some of their counter offensive. And in fact, they're killing a whole lot of Russian soldiers. And the sanctions in my view, even though many people are debating this right now have started to kick in with Putin. He's having trouble on the home front, with his economy, with his manufacturing, with recruiting new soldiers for the fight. Ukraine has had a tough battle, that's for sure.
It's been several tough campaigns. And whereas the counter offensive has not made the gains that both Ukrainians and the West thought it would make, it still has been successful in terms of pushing Russia back.
VAUSE: In the last couple of days, "The Washington Post" has taken an in depth look at why the Ukrainian counter-offensive hasn't met expectations. Much of it comes down to disagreements between Ukrainian and U.S. officials over timing, as well as execution. Here's part of the reporting. By May, concern was growing within the Biden administration among allied backers. According to the planning, Ukraine should have already launched its operations. As far as the U.S. military was concerned, the window of opportunity was shrinking fast. Intelligence over the winter had shown that Russian defenses were relatively weak and largely unmanned, and that morale was low among Russian troops after the losses in Kharkiv and Kherson. U.S. intelligence assess that senior Russian officers felt the prospects were bleak.
That quickly changed over the coming months after that. But on the other hand, the Ukrainian troops needed more time for training. And when this original plan actually did go into action, it lasted about four days. You're proof once again, everyone has a plan until they're punched in the face. But looking forward, you know, can Ukraine regain the momentum here and is it even possible without U.S. support?
HERTLING: If I can comment first on "The Washington Post" piece, because I read that and I find that very interesting. You know, there's an old saying that if you get three generals around a map board, you're going to have at least four different opinions on what should happen next. That is what has happened during the period prior to the counter offensive starting last spring.
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The problem is, John, what we were expecting of Ukraine was that they would stand 10 feet tall with a force that had never been tested in battle. And you know, you and I have talked since the beginning of this campaign. I believe that the requirement for training and combined arms operation was not going to be met with a piece together, training opportunity by the West to help Ukraine have an army of a couple of hundred thousand soldiers going into the offensive on multiple fronts.
At the same time, Russia transition from the offense to the defense, the defense is much easier to execute. But again, I go back to the point that I think Ukraine has learned a lot of lessons. And oh, by the way, so has Russia. So both forces are a little bit better than they were at the very beginning. But I still believe Ukraine is going to persevere.
VAUSE: Mark Hertling, good to see, sir. Thank you for your time.
HERTLING: Always a pleasure, John. Thank you.
VAUSE: When we come back here on CNN some tough questions about anti- Semitism from lawmakers to some of the most elite universities in the United States. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN Newsroom.
Israeli ground operations have now moved into southern Gaza and certainly Khan Yunis, the second biggest city in the Palestinian territory. On Tuesday, senior Israeli officials warn the war on Hamas would not be over anytime soon. But White House official tells CNN, the current ground operation could be over within weeks. CNN's Alex Marquardt has details.
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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Israeli strikes tonight in southern Gaza as Israel expands its campaign. New satellite images show dozens of Israel's armored vehicles near the main road heading to southern Gaza's biggest city, Khan Yunis.
Israel's top general said Tuesday that the military is operating, quote, in the heart of Khan Yunis where Israeli officials have said Hamas is top leadership has dug in. According to a journalist who filmed this video, IDF troops moving south fired on civilians and journalists, airstrikes have been seen near the city. Chaos as the wounded are rushed to the hospital and the dead are counted. Amid the renewed fighting, hospitals continue to overflow.
We are facing a huge problem this doctor in Khan Yunis says. God forbid if we get more patients. There's no space for them at all. Many in Khan Yunis have gone there from Northern Gaza after Israel told more than 1 million people to evacuate. Now they're being told to move again to so called safe zones, though humanitarian officials and civilians say that nowhere is safe.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need the war to stop, cease fire. I wish because nobody will win in this war.
MARQUARDT: A senior U.N. official says the civilian death toll is rapidly increasing. Overall, according to the Hamas-controlled ministry of health, almost 16,000 people in Gaza have been killed since October 7th.
In an interview with "OUTFRONT", an IDF spokesman conceded that the majority of deaths could be civilians, saying that if two Palestinian civilians are killed for every Hamas militant, that ratio would be, quote, "tremendously positive".
LT. COL. JONATHAN CONRICUS, IDF SPOKESPERSON: If you compare that ratio to any other conflict in urban terrain between a military and a terrorist organization using civilians as their human shields and embedded in the civilian population, you will find that that ratio is tremendously positive and perhaps unique in the world. MARQUARDT: Spokesperson Jonathan Conricus later admitted he should've
chosen his words more carefully. Amid the onslaught in Gaza, Hamas today claimed a barrage of rockets fired at Tel Aviv. Despite the Iron Dome intercepts, the large black smoke of an impact was seen north of the city and shrapnel plunged to the ground, here narrowly missing two people walking on the sidewalk.
Alex Marquardt, CNN -- Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: David Sanger is a CNN political and national security analyst as well as White House and national security correspondent for "The New York Times".
It's good to see. It's been a while.
DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Good to be with you, John.
VAUSE: Ok. So the Israeli government is making it clear, at least in the last several hours, that this war will not be over anytime soon. And even when the fighting in Gaza stops, Israel won't be leaving Gaza, at least not from a security point of view. Here's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I want to say a word about the day after Hamas. Gaza needs to be demilitarized. But in order for Gaza to be demilitarized, there's just one force that can for demilitarize it. And that power is the IDF.
No international force can be responsible for that. We saw in other places what happened when they brought in international forces in order to dematerialize. I am not willing to close my eyes and accept any other arrangement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: So, there's a couple of questions out there. How long will the Israelis be staying? Can they maintain security during a long period of time? Because in the days after October 7th, there is broad agreement and support about destroying Hamas among Israelis.
But did Israeli sign up for another long-term occupation of the Gaza Strip.
SANGER: The Americans who've been coming through Israel, they've all begun to see variations of the same policy solve, which is Israel cannot be an occupying force again in Gaza. There's a reason that they had to leave in 2004, 2005.
Second, that there can be no reduction of Gaza territory.
And the third was that you can't force Gazans to leave. We've already heard Prime Minister Netanyahu who say he is not on
board with is the first and the second. You just heard him say you can't imagine anyone running the territory other than the IDF, the Israeli Defense Forces. And previously, we heard him and some of his aides today say they're now needs to be a buffer zone between Gaza and Israel. And that buffers own will come out of Gazan territory.
So, we're headed, I think, to a real disagreement on the fundamental strategy for making a future Gaza war.
VAUSE: Well, the here and now is though, the ground offensive in Gaza has renewed. And Israel has been issuing evacuation notices for certain neighborhoods, as well as minimizing civilian casualties.
Aid workers though and U.N. officials remain highly critical of the Israeli operations. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES ELDER, UNICEF SPOKESPERSON: It's not a safe zone if it's only free from bombardment as sometimes have not been. It's a safe zone when you can guarantee the conditions of food, water, medicine, and shelter, ok? And I've seen for myself, these are entirely, entirely absent. Ok.
You cannot overstate this. These are tiny patches of barren land, or they're street corners, they're sidewalks, they're half-built buildings.
There's no water, not a little bit -- there is no water. No facilities, no shelter from the cold and the rain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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VAUSE: Publicly, the U.S. has praised Israel for these safe zones. Privately though, they believe, at least officials believe, that Israel could be doing more to minimize civilian casualties.
Overall though, as there essentially a cost-benefit analysis for Israel? The more it does on the ground establishing safe zones and, you know, knocks on the roofs, the longer it will take to meet its military objectives?
SANGER: So, this has been the trade-off all along. They know that if this goes on, a couple of things happen.
The Hamas leadership may get away or find a way to regroup. International pressure will build on Israel as the casualties -- the civilian casualties mount.
The Israelis, you can tell from their own public statement, including those about what the ratios are between Hamas were killed and civilians were killed, they are quite sensitive on this issue. VAUSE: Yes, and with that in mind, on Monday, an IDF spokesperson
commented on reports of a kill ratio show in Gaza -- two Palestinian civilians for every dead Hamas fighters. He said if that was the case, he wouldn't confirm it but he said it would be a tremendous positive for urban warfare.
That response has been widely criticized, but to your point, what about that other formula, the ratio of dead civilians in relation to the number of people who have were radicalized and go on and you know, take up arms?
SANGER: Right, it's the same issue we faced in the United States here about Mosul, about Fallujah and many other places. That was one of, you know, Donald Rumsfeld's rules, the former defense secretary under President Bush, which was asking the question, if you bomb the living room, how many radicals are you creating in the basement?
I think the other reason that the Israeli statement seemed to fall kind of flat was it was putting a pretty hard-carded numeric measure on the question of whether they were reducing human -- civilian casualties here.
VAUSE: David, it's good to see you. David Sanger there, CNN political and national security analyst. Thanks for your time, David. Appreciate it.
SANGER: Great to see you.
VAUSE: Israeli investigators say there is growing evidence Hamas militants carried out a coordinated campaign of rape and violent and sexual crimes against women on October 7th. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has lashed out at the U.N. for weeks of indifference, which only acknowledged the crimes this week when a special session was organized by Israel at the U.N. on Monday focusing on claims of gender-based violence.
Meantime, a U.N. inquiry into potential war crimes committed by both sides of the war said last week it will investigate the allegations of sexual violence.
The Israeli prime minister says he did not hear the U.N. or other human rights groups speak out until a few days ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NETANYAHU: I say to the women's rights organizations, to the human rights organizations, you've heard of the rape of Israeli women, horrible atrocities, sexual mutilation, where the hell are you?
I expect all civilized leaders, governments, nations to speak up against this atrocity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: On Monday, Hamas again denied committing rape and sexual violence during these attacks. Well, the heads of some of the most elite universities in the United
States are being grilled by lawmakers in Congress about alleged incidents of anti-Semitism on campus. Tensions have been running high among students since the Hamas attack on Israel nearly two months ago.
CNN's Rene Marsh has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REP. VIRGINIA FOXX (R-NC): After the events of the past two months, it's clear that rabid anti-Semitism and the university are two ideas that cannot be cleaved from one another.
RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Presidents of Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, and MIT facing tough questions about how they've responded to anti-Semitism on their campuses since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Since the October 7th Hamas terror attack on Israel, hundreds of students at campuses across the country have held anti-war protests, in some cases using charged language and at times turning violent.
REP. GLENN GROTHMAN (R-WI): I have a friend whose son goes to the university of Pennsylvania. Right now, he's physically afraid to go to the library at night.
Could you give us your reasons as to why that is true in Pennsylvania and why today a Jewish student is afraid to walk to the library at night?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm devastated to hear that.
MARSH: Now, the Department of Education has opened an unprecedented number of investigations into alleged incidents of hate on college campuses, Penn and Harvard among them.
REP. MARK TAKANO (D-CA): Can you tell us why the university did not react as quickly as other universities might've or others might have hoped?
[01:39:44]
CLAUDINE GAY, PRESIDENT, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: The notion that Harvard did not react is not correct.
From the moment I learned of the attacks on October 7th, I was focused on action to ensure that our students were supported and safe.
REP. ELISE STEFANIK (R-NY): There have been multiple marches at Harvard, with students chanting, quote, "There is only one solution, intifada, revolution," and quote, "globalized intifada" is that correct?
GAY: I've heard that thoughtless, reckless and hateful language on our campus, yes.
STEFANIK: Do you believe that type of hateful speech is contrary to Harvard's code of conduct, or is it allowed at Harvard?
GAY: It is at odds with the values of Harvard.
MARSH: The focus of much of the days questioning, the fine line between allowing freedom of speech, while at the same time protecting students who feel threatened by the language.
REP. KEVIN KILEY (R-CA): If you are talking to a prospective student's family, a Jewish student's family right now, could you look them in the eye and tell them that their son or daughter would be safe and feel safe and welcome on your campus?
GAY: We are absolutely committed to student safety.
MARSH: All of the university presidents made it a point to tell the committee they're also seeing a rise in Islamophobia on campuses, so they are committed to not only addressing anti-Semitism but Islamophobia as well.
The university also listed several measures that they put in place since the October 7th Hamas attack. That includes increased security on campus and more counseling services.
Rene Marsh, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: The E.U. has warned of an increased risk in terror attacks over the holiday after the Hamas attack on Israel, and will now increase security at places of worship.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YLVA JOHANSSON, E.U. COMMISSIONER FOR HOME AFFAIRS: With the war between Israel and Hamas and the polarization it causes in our society, with the upcoming holiday season, there is a huge risk of terrorist attacks in the European Union.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Similar concerns in the United States, where the Justice Department is reporting a sharp increase in hate crime investigations, also since October 7th.
And the FBI director told a Senate committee Tuesday it's been following a, quote, "drumbeat of foreign terror threats" since Hamas attacked Israel, again, on October 7th.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: -- around the clock to identify and disrupt potential attacks by those inspired by Hamas's horrific terrorist attacks in Israel.
I've never seen a time where all of the threats, where so many of the threats are all elevated, all at exactly the same time. SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Would you say that there is multiple
blinking red lights out there?
WRAY: I see blinking lights everywhere I turn.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Still to come on CNN, genetic testing firm 23andme confirms a major data breach. What happens if they're able to access, not much, just your very DNA.
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[01:44:51]
VAUSE: In the coming hours, former British prime minister, Boris Johnson, is set to make another highly-anticipated appearance before an inquiry. This one, into how the government handled the COVID-19 pandemic. Johnson will face two days of questioning with his reputation and that of a conservative government at stake, headed into an election to be expected (ph) next year.
The panel has already heard damaging testimony about his handling of the pandemic. That includes claims of government incompetence and allegations that Johnson told colleagues he would prefer to see people die in large numbers, rather than order a second lockdown.
His testimony could also be damaging for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. He was finance minister, at the time.
New revelations about the data breach at genetic testing firm 23andme which is now confirmed, a profiles of nearly 7 million customers were hacked. In some cases, they were able to access users' ancestry reports, birth years, and zip codes.
The company says hackers were able to get into profiles that uses the feature called DNA relatives. It also accessed the subset of family tree information.
They used old user names and passwords from other Websites, to break into the accounts. A 23andme spokesperson says the company is in the process of notifying affected customers, and says, it has beefed up measures to protect data.
Joining me now Eric Noonan, a cybersecurity expert and CEO of CyberSheath Services International. Eric, thank you for being there with us.
ERIC NOONAN, CEO, CYBERSHEATH SERVICES INTERNATIONAL: Thank you, John.
VAUSE: So 23andme says the hackers were able to access this ancestry information, health related information. Based upon users genetics but also information of their relatives including names, relationships, locations, birth year.
That is a lot of information. What are they putting together here? What are the real risks here associated with this data beach? It seems like they have pretty much, you know, almost all the vitals here?
NOONAN: Yes. The risks are tremendous, John. A great way to characterize it and to think of it in frames of risk. And so, if you look since its initial breach just close back in October just a couple of months ago. It has grown to about half of the user base now of 23andme. The information around ethnicity, around potential predisposition to a certain health conditions, towards DNA information and all of that information is there.
And so the risk is really the kind of keys to the kingdom relative to genetic, personally identifiable information.
And it's got a lot of users behind it, and it's a publicly traded company, and so that makes it a company that really falls into this, ironically, unregulated stage relative to cybersecurity. At least for another ten days or so.
The SEC, the Securities and Exchange Commission is moving to, at least, enforce some disclosure and additional requirements against publicly traded companies like 23andme. But you know, it has been a long time coming, John.
VAUSE: You know, if a lot of people who signed up for 23andme, it was kind of a bit of fun. But the risks here are just so real, and to get into these accounts simply by using old passwords, and user names, seems to be a fairly lax security situation for 23andme.
NOONAN: Well, that's the crux of the problem. I think you've nailed it. And so once you really unpack that, what that says to me is it is kind of a fun thing with very, very sensitive information. And so that puts the user at tremendous risk. And so the job in a situation like that of the government I think is to manage, and regulate that risk.
If you look at other parts of the economy -- automobile safety, aviation safety and security, we don't put the onus on the user to say make sure that you know, you've done all these things relative to the aircraft you're about to board and the maintenance is up-to-date, and the pilot did the checklist.
But ion other businesses that hold our sensitive data, there have been this call, for many years, to put the burden of security on the user. And I think that we need to ask our government, and I think fortunately, our government is very much taking a whole of government approach to regulate these companies for mandatory minimum cybersecurity, to protect the folks who are interacting with those businesses.
VAUSE: You mentioned this. The original hack happened back in October. And hackers advertised, you know, the data of 1 million users Jewish Ashkenazi descent and 100,000 Chinese users on a well-known hacking forum. A database titled "Ashkenazi DNA data of celebrities". It is putting it up for sale for $1.10 which prompted this headline by Wire, "23andme user data stolen in targeted attack on Ashkenazi Jews".
So what are your thoughts on this? Was the data sharing meant to target this community? Were the hackers trying to make headlines? Was this sort of an anti-Semitic attack? How do you see this?
NOONAN: Well, there's a lot of angles there. And so it could be all of the above. We don't know and probably won't for a while.
But the point is, it can be used for all of those purpose regardless of the initial purpose. And then that information is sold online.
And then again, the kind of obviousness of hindsight is that well, of course, this kind of information could be used to target ethnicities, and, of course, could be sold on the dark web.
[01:49:58]
NOONAN: So it wasn't something that you needed an incredible amount of foresight to see. And therefore I believe we shouldn't need incredible amount of foresight to protect. And that burden again is on the companies, but companies really cannot make this move, I don't think, without the commensurate regulation, and enforcement by the government.
VAUSE: One thing which is unique about 23andme than these genetic sites is that you sign up for it but you bring your family, whether they like it or not, along with you. So they are put at risk, whether they like it or not. What are the protections being offered to them?
NOONAN: Well, that's another wonderful point of this breach, and how illustrative it is of the problem. It's really become a ripple effect that anybody, you potentially interact with knowingly or not at the Website.
And so it's a great example of how these things always grow worse with time, and so you see it with the initial reporting. The initial reporting was this kind of it's always generally a small breach. It's under control. We know how it happened. And then the longer you wait, a matter of months, more is revealed.
And so probably nothing is done for those users who are essentially the victim of a digital drive by. But they should be protected. But companies are probably not going to make the investment to go and do these things, proactively, or reactively, without regulation.
And I think on the heels of the SEC regulation, FTC, Department of Defense, the government agencies and departments are moving aggressively, and I think rightfully so, to regulate these companies to protect those unintended victims of these crimes.
VAUSE: As Colin Powell would often say, if it sounds bad, it's probably worse. Eric, thanks for being with us. Thank you for staying up early, thank you, or up late. Thank you, sir.
NOONAN: Thank you, John.
VAUSE: Well now to the rivalry between Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, yes, the two billionaires. Analysts says Zuckerberg's Threads is getting more downloads this year than Musk's X, formerly known as Twitter. The marketing firm (INAUDIBLE) says that there have been 182 million
downloads of Threads since it launched a few months ago. That's about 20 percent more than X which have been downloaded 150 million times this year.
Analysts say Threads was ripe for explosive growth compared to the much more established and hateful place known as X. Thanks Elon.
Just ahead, 2023, did you feel? Was it kind of hot? Well yes, hottest on record. It's getting hotter. More on that in a moment.
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VAUSE: It's official and hardly surprising. 2023 will be the hottest year on record. From June to November, each month set a new temperature record by a very wide margin, July being the warmest month now on record.
Details now from CNN meteorologist Chad Myers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, just in from the Copernicus Climate Change Service, November of 2023 was the warmest November on record and probably to no one's surprise. 1.75 degrees Celsius, 3.15 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels.
Now we didn't really start out in the record territory, but boy, we got there in a hurry. June, July, August, September, October and now November were all records by a large margin in some spots.
[01:54:55]
MYERS: And yes November of 2023 will take this line, and push it all the way into record territory. There is very little, if anything December can do to not make 2023 the entire year the warmest year on record, globally because we are so far above where we should be.
In fact some days, we're even two degrees Celsius, 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above normal. There was a little of a perturbation in here in October and into November, but now we are so far above the old line, which was 2016, another El Nino. That 2023 is going to be the warmest year on record, for sure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, back in the day, Tom Hanks starred in the megahit "Apollo 13", directed by Ron Howard, great movie. And now, he's the man behind a series of documentaries about the Apollo missions.
The "Moonwalkers a Journey with Tom Hanks" featured at the Lightroom in London. The (INAUDIBLE) production is narrated by Hanks, who co- wrote it and with writer/director, Christopher Riley. Here is a clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM HANKS, ACTOR: In the 50,000 years of human history, just 12 of us have traveled from our earth, to walk on another celestial body.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 40 seconds away from the Apollo 11 lift off.
Five, four, three, two, one -- lift off. We have a lift off. Lift off on Apollo 11.
HANKS: Now joint me on a journey back to the moon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Just one documentary, not a series. "Moonwalkers" includes interviews with astronauts, and original footage of the missions using Lightroom's projection and audio technology.
But Hanks is all about celebrating the Apollo missions, and looking forward to future journeys to the moon.
Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HANKS: The show is about the wonder of the moon and the amazing creatures that have made it possible, for members of their race in order to walk upon it. The truth is in the 50,000 years of human history, only 12 representatives of bipeds like you and me, have walked on the surface of another planet. And that's the 12 missions of Apollo and that was 50 years ago.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The "Moonwalkers" will open today, runs until April 21st next year at the Lightroom in London.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
Stay with us. CNN NEWSROOM continues with my friend and colleague Rosemary Church after a very short break.
Hope to see you back here tomorrow.
[01:57:27]
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