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CNN International: Deadly Strikes In Gaza As Mediators Push Ceasefire Deal; IDF: Bodies Of Six Israeli Hostages Recovered In Gaza; Blinken Arrives To Doha After Gaza Ceasefire Talks In Cairo; Tonight: Doug Emhoff, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama To Address DNC. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired August 20, 2024 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:44]
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: It is 8:00 p.m. in London, 2:00 p.m. in Chicago, 10:00 p.m. here in Tel Aviv. I'm Jim Sciutto. Thanks so much for joining me today on CNN newsroom, and let's get right to the news.
Another day without a ceasefire and hostage deal. Another stark reminder of the deadly cost of this war. For every hour, it continues.
In Gaza, two Israeli airstrikes killed at least 18 people. The majority of the victims were women and children. One strike targeted school which was sheltering displaced families, killing in that crushed their 12 people. The IDF said it was a precise strike on militants operating inside that school.
Overnight, the Israeli military retrieved the bodies of six hostages, Israeli hostages from inside tunnels in Khan Younis in Gaza, 105 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, remain in Gaza. Israel believes at least 36 of them are dead as well.
The families of those still held continue to call on the Israeli government to finalize a ceasefire and hostage deal.
The U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken, is attempting to bridge the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas arriving in Doha to continue those talks that after a stop in Egypt, but let's be frank, the public statements of the last few days appear to indicate the two sides remain far apart.
CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is in Tel Aviv.
And, Nic, it seems now with some of the statements we're hearing from State Department officials that we know what the sticking points are now and that those sticking points may have gotten stickier, particularly on control of the Philadelphi corridor.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: So it was seen by Secretary Blinken, there was a big achievement to get the Israeli prime minister to agree to sign up to this bridging proposal, this bridging proposal.
But the prime minister made comments -- but the prime minister made comments to a tiny group of hostage families today, this should be said, you know, to give it context of these particular hostage families are supporters of Netanyahu. And he said to them that he wasn't prepared to get give up and remove Israeli troops from the Philadelphi corridor. That's the border between Gaza and Egypt. And the Netzarim corridor in these things that are red lines for Hamas.
And we've heard from a senior U.S. government official who said this is not helpful and constructive, protect that -- using -- using that saying that when were can he get these ceasefire talks going.
SCIUTTO: I don't want to give Hamas more credit than it deserves, but Hamas did release a statement prior saying that Netanyahu was introducing new demands and obstacles. Is that a substantive claim as best we know them?
ROBERTSON: The bridging proposal is intended to get over it appears these additional elements that Hamas believes were added to what they'd agreed to in July and say that they still agree to. They haven't rejected the new bridging proposals yet. But their language does not sound positive and therefore the statements by Prime Minister Netanyahu are not going to be conducive to getting them to do that. And there are some analysts here and elsewhere in the region who would say that actually is the intention with the Israeli prime minister that he actually it doesn't want Hamas to come along with us.
SCIUTTO: Now, Blinken, of course, came here. He stopped in Egypt. Now, he's going to Doha, presumably to get a read from Qatari mediators and others as to what Hamas is response is to this, is that -- that you might say is one of the most key stops on this -- on this visit.
ROBERTSON: He had an hour with the Egyptian president today, and more time with the Egyptian foreign minister, but they're not as close to Hamas officials because the Hamas officials are living in Doha, there in the capital there.
SCIUTTO: Yeah.
ROBERTSON: That's where the role is of Qatar live. So, yes, they know that much better and can probably better understood what their weaknesses and pressure points.
SCIUTTO: We'll see what the read from his has when he leaves there.
Nic Robertson, thanks so much.
Well, three weeks after vowing revenge on Israel, Iran has now said it will not take any quote, hasty action as it weighs how to retaliate for the assassination of the Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
A spokesman for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps told state media, quote, the rate waiting period may be prolonged, and that Israel's, Israelis must live in instability.
CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is in Tehran.
Fred, I understand you spoke to a former leader of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Is that what you're hearing from his him as well, that there keeping their powder dry as it were to see what the outcome is of these associations?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think keeping their powder dry, but also trying to keep the Israelis guessing as well. I think a lot of this has really become a waiting game. And first of all, you're absolutely right, Jim, this really was a day when there were a lot of interesting nuances coming out of Tehran here.
First, you had that spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who not only said that there would possibly be -- possibly a prolonged waiting period before Iran retaliates, but also that that retaliation could look very different than the last time that Iran retaliated against Israel. When, of course, they launched hundreds of drones and missiles towards Israeli territory. Most of those were taken down some of them did come through.
Again, the Iranians now saying its unclear what the nature of their response is going to be as well. And you're absolutely right, I spoke to the former head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He also wouldn't say what exactly that response would look like, but he did say that it was going to be harsh.
Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHSEN REZAEE, FORMER IRGC HEAD (through translator): The occupying power of Jerusalem is a regime that will continue its evil acts if it does not receive a harsh response. Also, the United States and Europe have not been able to control this regime.
PLEITGEN: How does Iran find the right measure to prevent this from turning into a bigger war in the region?
REZAEE: We have investigated a possible repercussions and we will not let Netanyahu, who is sinking in a swamp, save him himself. The Iranian actions would be very calculated one.
PLEITGEN: The United States has threatened Iran though with what they called cataclysmic consequences if Iran strikes Israel. What's your reaction to that?
REZAEE: The U.S. is highly vulnerable to Iran. The commanders of the U.S. military are aware of Iran's capabilities. Therefore, they will avoid taking action against Iran. On the other hand, the U.S. is facing problems regarding their own defense coasts.
There has to be a ceasefire in Gaza soon. The United States and Israel should not repeat their mistakes. If in the first weeks of the Gaza war, the United States has stopped Israel and Netanyahu, the war will not extend.
So, the main element of the extension of the war, the U.S. and Israel, the more this war extends, the more the United States will be damaged.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: So listen, that former commander of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, but really also from other officials that we've been speaking to Jim here over the past couple of days in Tehran, one of the things that we keep hearing again and again is that all of them say a ceasefire in Gaza is necessary at something that Iran wants as well.
But we also keep hearing is that there's very little in the way of optimism that's such a ceasefire will happen. And then finally, one of the things of course that we've been talking about the past days is something that the Iranians once again have said today, is that the ceasefire negotiations and their retaliation to them are two very separate issues, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Fred Pleitgen in Tehran, thanks so much.
Joining me now for more on the current state of this conflict and the negotiations is Rula Jebreal. She's a journalist, a visiting lecturer, as well at the University of Miami.
Rula, thanks so much for taking the time tonight.
RULA JEBREAL, JOURNALIST: Thank you for having me, Jim.
SCIUTTO: The details of this bridging proposal are private, but we are getting a sense from comments of State Department officials and some reporting here in Israel as to what the newest sticking points are. And it seems to relate to an Israeli insistence on maintaining control of the Philadelphi corridor.
And I wonder, do you see that as a deal killer, a deal breaker here?
JEBREAL: Jim, I think it's fair to describe what's happening as the United States, once again capitulated to further demands by far right Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has, who have been accused by the family of the hostages, former prime minister, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak of wanting to sabotage the deal simply because he cares more, prioritized basically his political the life.
It's not the only the crossing -- that basically the Philadelphi crossing with between -- between Gaza and Egypt. He also kept leaking that he doesn't want to end the war, that he will continue his military operations, that he will continue the mass slaughter, mass starvation.
[15:10:07]
And he even refused recently a United Nation proposal to vaccinate children who are now dying of polio. In the next two or three weeks, we'll see -- we'll see thousands of children who will now die of polio, a very preventable disease. We're seeing the president -- the prime minister of Israel once again sabotaging a deal and dictating America's foreign policy. SCIUTTO: We heard even from President Biden last night, but certainly from Antony Blinken on his trip to the region still continuing clearly the White House wants a ceasefire and hostage deal, but I wonder, do you believe the Israeli prime minister is listening to the White House? Do you believe that Hamas is listening to the White House, or at least not, not obeying so much, but reacting to U.S. pressure?
JEBREAL: Well, Hamas just said on multiple occasions that they agreed that the ceasefire that was voted by the United Nations, and basically they agree to the terms. They never change their positions who happened to change and add additional conditions as Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
His coalition partners, far-right ministers, Ben Gvir, and others continued basically to violate every rule, every law, and add conditions that are incompatible with America's priority. I believe this administration relinquish any leverage by giving unconditional arms supplies, $20 billion. Why would Netanyahu, the prime minister who campaigned, standing in with billboards and with posters standing next to Russia's dictator Vladimir Putin next, and shaking the hand of one of dictators, Donald Trump, he is not going to listen to a Democratic administration.
He understand also what's happening in Chicago. He understand that Israel is a domestic policy issue, is not foreign policy issue. And understand that there's a major debate in the Democratic Party, about the soul of the Democratic Party. Can the Democratic Party that is putting a platform about social justice, protecting constitutional democracy, can that party actually, that is now debating in Chicago -- what to do about international law and about the enforcement of the Leahy law?
Netanyahu understand all of this and he's using it as a weapon against the United States and against Democrats.
SCIUTTO: Listen, to your point, there are Israelis who accuse Netanyahu of exactly that, of putting his own political fortunes above a ceasefire deal, above the lives of the hostages.
But I wonder if you believe Hamas, despite its public statements of support for a ceasefire might calculate that even with the deep suffering of civilians in Gaza, that extending the war is to Hamas's benefit as well?
JEBREAL: I don't know how they can benefit. They're already decimated or about to be decimated completely. So it's suicide, homicide.
I -- honestly, I read the statements and I realized that looking at what's happening today in Gaza, Jim was 40,000 Palestinians who will have been slaughtered in ten months and I see a force and I said this actually on CNN, you can decapitate a leadership, but you cannot kill an ideology.
We see this -- you and I covered the Iraq war. We studied actually the awakening, the strategy of Petraeus in Iraq. What was it about? Its offering a different option to the civilians, an option that is beyond terrorism and beyond terror and beyond the mass slaughter.
And they're not offering the Palestinian that and, thus, Hamas as an ideology will continue. I'm not the one saying this. It's actually the security apparatus in Israel who are now admitting that you cannot defeat Hamas militarily. There's no military solution.
Netanyahu understand that, but you know what, even after the ruling of the International Court of Justice, the toll the international community that they need to intervene because Israel is illegally occupying land, and is illegally annexing, the response from Netanyahu and his government, his far government, was to bombed Rafah 60 times in 42 hours.
That -- Rafah actually was the red line for Biden. So Netanyahu would continue to pressure the administration and the United States and hold them hostage. And when you relinquish your nationalist security interest to a foreign leader like Netanyahu is far right leader, you are actually hostage to his agenda.
SCIUTTO: Rula Jebreal, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts.
[15:15:01]
And still ahead this hour, we head over to Chicago where the Democratic National Convention is set for night two featuring speeches from former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCIUTTO: Tonight in Chicago, night two of the Democratic National Convention officially embracing Vice President Kamala Harris as the party's nominee in November. The headliners include one of the most popular figures in the Democratic Party and someone who helped usher in this moment for Harris. That is former President Barack Obama, as well as his wife, former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Plus, the second gentleman hoping to become the nation's first gentleman, Doug Emhoff, and live streamed into the convention hall. Harris and her running mate Tim Walz campaigning in neighboring Milwaukee in the very same arena where Republicans rallied around former President Trump one month ago back when this was a very different race with Joe Biden still at the top of the Democratic ticket.
Well, instead, President Joe Biden got an emotional hero's welcome, and "thank you" from the crowd as he recounted his administration's achievements in office, labeled Trump as an existential danger to the nation and had these words about his running mate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Selecting Kamala was the very first decision I made before I became -- when I became our nominee. And it was the best decision I made my whole career.
She's tough. She's experienced and she has enormous integrity. I promise, I'll be the best volunteer Harris and Walz have ever seen.
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[15:20:05]
SCIUTTO: It's quite a moment for the president who, of course, imagined himself accepting the party's nomination.
Again, CNN's Kevin Liptak, he is there in Chicago.
Kevin, we saw Kamala Harris make an appearance last night. A thank you to Joe Biden. She's not in Chicago tonight. Tell us the thinking about that?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, I don't think it's actually that uncommon for a candidate not to attend every night if their convention. Donald Trump made it something of a routine back in 2016, 2020, and this year as well.
But when you look at the history of these nominating conventions, you know, it's not all that infrequent that a candidate is out on the trail in the lead-up. And I think back to 2008 when then candidate Barack Obama was campaigning in Kansas City, which is unique in its own way, I don't know why a candidate would be there this time around, but he was campaigning as his wife was addressing the convention and they beamed him in and Michelle Obama and her daughters kind of waved from the stage.
So it's not all that unique, but certainly Kamala Harris is aware, Wisconsin is a critical battleground state. It's not that far away. And I think the goal of the campaign is to sort of hit two birds with one stone and have her out on the campaign trail.
But certainly, you know, last night was quite a moment in this arena as President Biden was greeted with that raucous reception from the audience. He was overcome really when he stepped out, that sea of signs saying "thank you, Joe", I think the president has been in politics long enough that those signs had two meetings. One, thank you for the record that you're leaving, but also thank you for stepping aside, and allowing a Democratic nominee who is going to be more competitive to replace you. And that is, of course, was the bittersweet underpinnings of his entire address.
You know, yesterday, we were saying that this was not necessarily the speech that President Biden wanted to give. I think I would revise that today to say it was not the night that he wanted to give it. It's easy to imagine an alternate universe the very speech he delivered being the one that he could have delivered as the nominee with the last ten minutes chopped off.
You know, it wasn't a lengthy testimony about his vice president and the current nominee. He talked about his record in office. He talked about Donald Trump as a threat to democracy. That's the very campaign that he wanted to run. A lot of Democrats just didn't think that was going to work and he's
no longer the nominee, but certainly I don't think you're going to hear any Democrats begrudge President Biden for delivering the speech that he delivered last night. But certainly, they are now moving to a more affirmative portion of this convention beginning with Barack Obama and the speech that he will deliver this evening.
You know, I'm told that convention organizers deliberately chose Obama to kind of introduce Kamala Harris to an American public that may not have been paying attention up until this moment, in part because he's the party's most gifted orator, but also he knows Kamala Harris. They have a history going back 20 years.
In fact, Kamala Harris was at the 2004 convention in Boston that really thrust Barack Obama into the national spotlight. Back then, he called himself a skinny guy with a funny name. Now he is entering the convention is something as a party elder, working to get Kamala Harris elected to the White House in November.
SCIUTTO: Kevin Liptak, it's going to be quite a moment to witness, thanks so much.
LIPTAK: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Joining us now is our political panel.
Even as they are honored veterans of Democratic politics and public service like Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, Democrats also spotlighted, spotlighted people. The party sees as future stars. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): And Chicago, we have to help her win. Because we know that Donald Trump would sell this country for a dollar if it meant lining his own pockets and greasing the palms of his Wall Street friends.
SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-GA): I need the poor children of Israel and the poor children of Gaza. I need Israelis and Palestinians. I need those in the Congo, those in Haiti, those in Ukraine. I need American children on both sides of the track to be OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: So our panel with us now, Democratic strategist and CNN political commentator Maria Cardona. And Peter Wehner, he's a former speechwriter for George W. Bush, now contributing writer for "The Atlantic" and "The New York Times".
Good to have you both.
First, if I could begin with you, Maria, I wonder what your thoughts were on night one and in particular, how this spoke to voters, especially undecided voters. Not just the folks in the hall.
MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right.
SCIOUTTO: But how did it speak to voters that Harris needs to win in November.
CARDONA: Absolutely, Jim. You know, I was in the hall last night and it certainly was an incredibly vibrant energetic emotional, joyful.
[15:25:03]
All of it, right? All of the great emotions that we have seen that Kamala Harris brings out in the audiences as she is campaigning. We saw here last night.
But I also think importantly to your point, what was talked about -- the essence of the speeches, the themes that all of the speakers touched upon, I think are universal American themes, and that they are themes that will touch upon that the values and the optimism of not just Democrats around the country, but of independence and frankly of Republicans who don't want to see another Donald Trump in the White House.
And so, for example, the stories of the women who have been affected by all of the really horrendous bans on abortion and reproductive rights, those stories brought tears to the eyes, not just the people in the arena, Jim, I got text after text and tweets on social media about how people all over the country were in tears listening to those stories because of the bands in those states that they literally put the lives of these women at risk and they're going to continue to put the lives of women at risk if we let Republicans tried to tell us what to do with our bodies.
So that issue and as you know, that was a very poignant issue for independent voters, not just women, independent voters across the country in 2022 --
SCIUTTO: Right.
CARDONA: That is going to be a massive issue for the elections in November as well.
SCIUTTO: So, Peter, let me ask you. Tonight, the DNC is going to include a number of Republicans, including a former Trump press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, as well as other speakers later in the week, former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger, I wonder if you think that is an effective strategy, and I might say not so much for the Republican base. They're likely sticking with Trump, but Nikki Haley voters, may be independents, are those good voices to reach them.
(INAUDIBLE)
SCIUTTO: Okay. We lot Peter -- we lost Peters audio. That's why he was tapping my ear there.
While we fix that, I want to go back to you, Maria, on that point Republican voices, who does the DNC, who does the Harris campaign hope they speak to.
CARDONA: The Harris campaign hopes that these Republican voices speak to so many people in the Republican Party, Jim, that are heartsick about what they see has happened to their beloved Republican Party of traditional American values. They do not see the Trump party as being reflective of the traditional Republican Party values that they have adhere to all of their lives.
And they are -- there are many of them -- and they have all been pushed out by the Republican Party of today, which is really Donald Trump's party. But I think what they will do tonight, Jim, as they speak to those traditional Republican Party values, I think there are a lot of people that feel that way across the country. Republicans who are really sad to see what has happened to their party, but who perhaps still feel connected, maybe because of their friends, maybe because of their family who support Donald Trump.
If they hear from these Republicans and in many cases, former Republicans because of who is at the head of the Republican Party today about why they are not just not supporting Donald Trump, but they are supporting Kamala Harris because of the existential nature of what's at stake for our country. And it is not Democratic Party values, it is American values.
It is democracy values. It is the values that we all hold dear. I think they're speaking to that, Jim, will give so many of those Republicans across the country the benefit of permission to break with the Donald Trump, with this MAGA Republican Party that they perhaps up until now have felt connected or, you know, obliged to be supportive of.
And I think that can be a very powerful trend going into November.
SCIUTTO: We'll see. I mean, so far, the polling indicates that the vast, vast majority of Republicans continue to support Donald Trump.
Maria Cardona, thanks so much. Peter Wehner, we did lose his audio there, but we will make sure to invite him back for Republican point of view.
Thanks so much to both of you.
Tonight, we will see a full circle moment one might say at the DNC. Let me play a clip from Kamala Harris from 20 -- from 2007.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, THEN-SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT ATTORNEY: We registered 112,000 people in California alone via the web in support of Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Well, back then in 2007, Harris was one of the first elected Democrats to endorse Barack Obama.
Tonight, the former president and former first lady will return that favor.
CNN's Jeff Zeleny, he's in Chicago as well.
You chronicle the connection between Harris and Obama that goes back some 20 years, all the way to the 2004 Democratic National Convention when it was Barack Obama, of course, who had his big star moment.
Tell us about how long those ties have been -- have brought them together.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, it's well-established that Barack Obama, then an Illinois state senator, running for the U.S. Senate, was the keynote speaker at that 2004 Democratic convention in Boston when John Kerry was the party's nominee. He delivered the keynote address, really imploring Americans to find an optimistic way forward. He said there are no red states, there are no blue states.
Well, in that audience that evening was Kamala Harris. She was the district attorney in San Francisco, a young lawyer who was captivated and taken by that message. It wasn't until several months later that the two would actually meet at a fundraiser that then-Senator Obama was having an in California, and that began a relationship that really is span these two decades.
You'll remember that when Barack Obama was running for president, just four years after that convention speech, it was Kamala Harris who is in Iowa volunteering for him, helping him on the ground. She endorsed Obama's candidacy over Hillary Clinton's candidacy, and then over the years of President Obama, after he was elected, he helped her as well was, a featured at an advertisement for her Senate campaign for her attorney general's campaign.
But I'm told it wasn't until really recent years and even weeks when the relationship has crystallized even more and he was a lead sounding board for her as she was really seizing the mantle of the Democratic Party in rapid fashion, and was looking for a running mate, he offered advice, I'm told he's walked her through and listened and served as a sounding board on several issues of the day from the economy, to the Middle East, to other matters.
So that's what brings us to tonight. So we know that Barack Obama, the former president, now and one of the most widely respected members of his party, he'll be delivering the keynote address here tonight. And we'll be really arguing in a forceful way while he believes that Harris and Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor, are the right leaders for this moment, I'm told to also draw a contrast with former President Donald Trump.
But, Jim, there's another Obama on the roster tonight as well. That's Michelle Obama. Right here in her hometown of Chicago. She's also expected to speak, and aides believed that her message and voices even more powerful because she, of course, has a far broader and deeper brand that exceeds politics, and really making the case for this Democratic ticket, but also trying to reach out to some voters who may be frustrated and disgusted by politics. So the book end of the Obama's tonight, but also Doug Emhoff, the Vice
President Harris's husband, were making a very personal case for her as well. But right here in Chicago, Jim, in the city that elected Barack Obama to the state Senate, the U.S. Senate, the presidency, all eyes certainly are on them, right here on the west side of Chicago -- Jim.
SCIUTTO: Yeah. Listen, there was a time when there were some speculation about Michelle Obama as a possible presidential candidate herself, not ever clear how substantial that was. Jeff Zeleny --
ZELENY: She was never interested.
SCIUTTO: -- in Chicago. Thanks so much.
Coming up next --
ZELENY: You bet.
SCIUTTO: Well, there you go. Facts matter.
Up next, our live coverage from Israel continues. A Palestinian woman shares her just tragic story with CNN after her husband and daughter were killed in an attack by Israel in Gaza.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:36:57]
SCIUTTO: In an overnight operation, the Israeli military announcing it has now retrieved the bodies of six hostages from Hamas tunnels in Khan Younis in Gaza. Countless Palestinian families are losing their loved ones as well. One of them, Sanaa Abu Tabaq, whose husband and daughter were killed in an Israeli attack on their home in Gaza.
She and her other daughter now share their painful story with CNN's Jeremy Diamond.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Five-year- old Sham's eyes are a portal to the past she cannot forget. There are the streets and homes scarred by war. This building where she recited her final prayers and then there is the indelible sight of her father and sister shot dead before her eyes.
Sham's mother, Sanaa, who suffered burns as a child, will never forget that day.
SANAA ABU TABAQ, SURVIVED ATTACK THAT KILLED HUSBAND AND DAUGHTER: I lost the most precious thing for me, my daughter.
DIAMOND: But there's more to their story than tragedy and loss in war torn Gaza. Sham and Sanaa stories, unlike any other, we have come across in ten months of war. That's because Sanaa doesn't just accused Israeli troops of killing her husband, Akram and daughter Yasmeen, an Israeli soldier may also have saved her life.
On November 24th, the week long truce between Israel and Hamas begins. Thousands of people begin heading back to their homes in northern Gaza. Sanaa and her family are among them.
But as they approach the Salatin neighborhood where they lived, they find themselves walking alone. Then shots ring out.
ABU TABAQ: My God bless her soul, Yasmeen. One bullet in her back and one in her shoulder. I was hit in my leg. And my husband was hit in his stomach. So we all sat on the ground. We couldn't move. And we were bleeding. Sham is the only one who wasn't hit.
DIAMOND: Her husband soon decides to crawl away to try to find help but moments later, he is shot again, fatally.
Sanaa lies on the ground bleeding, cradling her eldest daughter Yasmeen.
ABU TABAQ: She was saying, "Mom, did you die?" "Please don't die and leave us. I'm still alive". I held her and I told her, "No my dear, we are not going to die". "The ambulance is coming!" I was trying to give her hope. Even though I knew there was no hope.
DIAMOND: As a mother, I mean, you must have felt absolutely helpless in that moment.
ABU TABAQ: I wasn't able to do anything, and that was the hardest situation. I couldn't. She was even asking for water, and couldn't give her water.
[15:40:03]
DIAMOND: Yasmeen soon died in her mothers arms. For hours, Sanaa lies here with Sham, unable to move until she finally finds the strength to crawl down the street and into this nearby home. We obtained footage from that house after our first interview with Sanaa. This is the first time she and Sham are seeing it.
ABU TABAQ: This is the bathroom we hid in.
DIAMOND: And Sham begins to tell my colleague Abeer Salmaan what happened to her.
ABEER SALMAAN, CNN PRODUCER: What happened in the morning?
SHAM: The tanks came.
SALMAAN: How do you know the tanks had come?
SHAM: I heard their sound.
ABU TABAQ: I told her, "They've reached us." We recited the Shahada. She said, "Hid me so I don't see them when they shoot me (ph).
DIAMOND: An explosion, then rocks the bathroom. Israeli soldiers entered the house and called out in Arabic. What happens next is captured on muted body camera footage provided by the Israeli military. Two soldiers treating Sanaa's gunshot wounds.
ABU TABAQ: I told him, "Please have mercy. Didn't you see my daughter who was killed at the door?" "I beg you, please don't kill us, it's enough." He told me, "It wasn't us who killed her. It was Sinwar. I told him, "I have nothing to do with Sinawar, or anyone else." "You took my daughter and you took everything".
DIAMOND: The medics soon realizes her condition is serious. She needs to get to a hospital.
ABU TABAQ: The one who spoke Arabic started to make his calls. Then he told me, "We decied to help you and take you with us".
DIAMOND: Israeli soldiers carry Sanaa out of the building on a stretcher. Her hands clutching Sham. Nothing about this footage should be extraordinary. Militaries must protect and care for wounded civilians when possible under international law, but in this war, this site is exceedingly rare.
For eight months, Sanaa and Sham have lived in this Jerusalem hospital. Their journey here was no less traumatic, interrogation and strip searches came before treatments at an Israeli hospital. Israeli authorities are now planning to send them back to Gaza next month unless another country takes them in.
The Israeli military for its part told CNN in a statement that Sanaa and her family were caught in the crossfire. The IDF says its soldiers issued verbal warnings after the family stumbled upon a concealed military position, drawing a militant attack. The four people who entered in the area were caught in the intense exchange of fire between the terrorists and our troops. The troops did not open fire at the four people, nor did they aim at them.
ABU TABAQ: They are lying. There was nobody in that area.
DIAMOND: I wonder what would you say to that one soldier if you could see him again.
ABU TABAQ: But he also took from me the most precious thing I had. I can't even thank him, because he had mercy for us, but the will of God, not by his own will. Because if he had compassion, he wouldn't have deprived me of the dearest people to my heart.
DIAMOND: Sanaa's pain is as raw as ever and seeing her home again and footage filmed this spring brings a flood of emotion.
ABU TABAQ: Those were Yasmeen and Sham's shoes! I bought these shoes for Eid.
DIAMOND: Mundane objects are transformed into relics.
ABU TABAQ: This is Yasmeen's dress and this is Sham's dress. She always loved pink. This is her dress.
DIAMOND: And Sanaa is taken back in time to the life she will never get back.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Just such -- it's a deeply painful story, and also one of contrast because, of course, she's lucky. She and her daughter are alive, but they lost so much and now facing the possibility of being forced to go back to Gaza.
DIAMOND: That's right. Right now, these really military is planning to send her back to Gaza next month, and we don't have a ceasefire agreement in place. The war is still raging on. Her family is currently living in makeshift shelters and so unless something happens, meaning a third country that could step in and actually resettle her somewhere else, she is going to go back to Gaza to face a future of uncertainty for herself, as well as for her young daughter.
And that was -- I spoke with her this evening and she told me she is terrified of going back to Gaza. She's also terrified for her little daughter Sham, who has made its so much progress over the last five months since I first met her. And she fears that she could backslide if she goes back to a warzone.
SCIUTTO: So, are there discussions now or are there potential third party countries who might take them in?
[15:45:04]
DIAMOND: We don't know of any right now. Obviously, the story is now getting out and perhaps it will raise awareness of their situation but what we do know is that she -- she's afraid, she is afraid and without somebody else stepping in, it is likely that she will be sent back to Gaza.
There is also a human rights group, Physicians for Human Rights Israel, that is currently making an appeal for her case. So we'll see how it plays out over the coming weeks.
SCIUTTO: Well, the images of her lost daughter's pink dresses there, just so moving.
Jeremy Diamond, thanks so much for -- thanks so much for bringing us their story.
We do want to bring you now live comments now from the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken who's been traveling in Doha. Let's listen to those comments in progress.
ANTONY BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE: Right there? Very good. Thank you.
Good evening, everyone.
We had a good day in Egypt and now in Qatar. I had a chance -- in Egypt, as you know, to see President Sisi, the foreign minister Abdelatty, the intelligence chief Abbas Kamel. And here in Qatar, I was just on the phone with the prime minister who was traveling to Australia, but saw the minister of state Al-Khulaifi.
And with our partners in Egypt and Qatar our message is simple it's clear, and it's urgent we need to get the ceasefire and hostage agreement even over the finish line and we need to do it now.
Time is of the essence. Time is of the essence because with every passing day, the well-being and lives of the hostages are in jeopardy. Time is of the essence because every single day, women, children, men in Gaza are suffering without access to adequate food medicine and at risk of being wounded or dying in fighting that they didn't start and they cannot stop.
And time is of the essence because with every passing day, there's the danger of escalation in the region, escalation that we've been working to prevent from day one since October 7th. With Egypt and with Qatar, we're united in purpose and united in action. We're working in our different ways to try to ensure that there is not escalation, sending the necessary messages to all of the potential actors, including Iran, including Hezbollah to avoid taking any steps that could escalate the conflict or spread it.
We're united on our work with the parties to try to bring this agreement across the finish line and Qatar and Egypt in particular are in direct contact with Hamas, working to bring it along as we work to conclude this agreement.
Now as I think everyone remembers, President Biden put out a detailed plan for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in May, the entire world endorsed it. The U.N. Security Council endorsed it. And since then, we've been working to bring the parties along with it.
A lot of work went into that and we got to the point where as we were working on implementing that plan, it was necessary hearing from both parties to provide some clarifications, to provide some additional detail and that's exactly what went into the bridging proposal that our three countries before, just a little over a week ago.
Israel has now accepted that proposal. I heard that directly from Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday, and we are hoping -- expect that Hamas will do the same. That's the critical next step. But once that happens, we also have to complete the detailed implementation agreements that go along with putting the ceasefire into effect.
And there -- it's very important that everyone do what's necessary to bring the flexibility to the table, to make sure that we can get the implementation agreed, and that the parties to the ceasefire can make good on the commitments that they've made in the agreement.
So that's the process that's ongoing at the same time. We're engaged every single day with Israel and our Qatari and Egyptian partners are engaged with Hamas. And over the coming days, we're going to do everything possible to one get Hamas on board with the bridging proposal, and then to make sure that both parties work on and agree to necessary details of implementation that would allow everything to go forward.
[15:50:06]
So that's where we are. And I just returned to what I started with, which is a strong sense, a strong commitment on the part of the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and for that matter of many other countries on the fierce urgency of now. This needs to get done, and it needs to get done in the days ahead and we will do everything possible to get it across the finish line.
REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE)
BLINKEN: Well, Tom, here's what I can say, first, going back to the very early days when we put out the so-called Tokyo principles about the future, one of them is very clear that the United States does not accept any long term occupation of Gaza by Israel. More specifically, the agreement is very clear on the schedule and the locations of IDF withdraws from Gaza and Israel has agreed to that.
So that's -- that's as much as I know. That's what I'm very clear about. Again, I'm not -- I'm not going to get into the details of the agreement, but it is laid out in the agreement, an agreement that Israel is endorsed, and it is specific as to the locations and the schedule for withdrawals.
REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE)
BLINKEN: I can't speak to what he's quoted as saying. I can just speak to what I heard from him directly yesterday when we spent three hours together, including again, Israel's endorsement of the bridging proposal and thus the detailed plan and that plan, among other things, as I said includes a very clear schedule and locations for withdrawals.
But the other thing is, it's so clearly in the interests of all concerned starting with Israel, to bring this to a close. And I think that was also reflected in the conversation that I had. The hostages depend on it. The security of the country depends on it. The ability to really ensure that we don't have the conflict spreading to other places because Gaza is in many ways the key to making sure that we can actually move things in the north in Lebanon and Hezbollah in a better direction.
It's the key to helping make sure that we can take down the temperature in the Red Sea with the Houthis. It's the key to seeing if we can pursue normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which both countries remain very interested in. It's the key to actually putting everyone starting with Israel on a path to greater peace and security.
And of course, is key to getting the hostages home which Israelis desperately want to see happen, and we want to see happen, we need to see happen. There are Americans who remain hostage in Gaza.
And I was very clear about the American interests in making sure that our people come home to their families and that the remains of those who have perished are brought back. Thank you.
Robert?
REPORTER: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. The bridging proposal was endorsed and agreed to by both the Egyptians and Qataris. Help us understand how the proposal was advance over the course of your stop today. And do you receive assurances from Israel, any path to support Egypt and Qatar as negotiating partners and intermediaries, has the needle move at all when it comes to Hamas? Any more confident today that they will agree to this proposal (INAUDIBLE).
And if I may, what are your expectations to see outcomes in the next coming days when negotiators are set (INAUDIBLE).
BLINKEN: So the bridging proposal was put forward was put forward on behalf of all three of our countries, the United States put her forward with the full support of Egypt and Qatar.
And what's happening now is, among other things, both Egypt and Qatar in their engagements with Hamas making very clear as necessary what's in that proposal, explaining it as necessary if there's any -- any confusion so that Hamas fully understands it and agrees to it.
As I said before, the bridging proposal is based on the May -- late May agreement that we put -- the President Biden put out, endorsed and incorporated a U.N. Security Council resolution and then we heard from both parties different comments on it. We tried to reflect some of those comments in this bridging proposal.
And a bridge by definition has to two parties to it. There's the -- there are two points to a bridge. So we've tried to reflect that in the bridging proposal and now the process is making sure that Hamas fully understands it, and what's in it? And I believe that they should -- again, they should be prepared to endorse it. Just as Israel is endorsed it.
And then the critical thing is getting clear understandings on implementation of the agreement, and there are some complicated pieces of business that are involved there. That's exactly why its so important that the negotiators who are working the details of this have maximum flexibility from the Israeli government and also from Hamas's leadership so that we can actually bring this to a conclusion, bring it over the finish line.
And in this, as I said, the United States, Egypt, and Qatar are absolutely united and but they have a unique role in being able to engage with Hamas. We of course deeply engaged with Israel. And the three of us working together I believe can get this to where it needs to go.
But as always, these things sometimes take more time than you want what we are all united on is the urgency of the moment, because as I said, with every passing day more bad things can happen to more people -- to more good people who don't deserve it and we're united in that, and we're going to continue to do the work.
There's one other thing I should actually have shared with all of you, which is that, of course, we were intensely focused on Gaza during this during this visit. But in Egypt in particular, but also here in Qatar, we had extensive discussions about Sudan. And it's very important that people focus on that, too, because with everything else going on in the world, the worst humanitarian situation in the world right now is in Sudan.
There are more people in Sudan who are suffering from fighting, from violence, from lack of access to food, and basic humanitarian assistance, and we are very determined to try to move that to a better place as well. We convene talks in Switzerland that are -- that are ongoing. At the same time, we've been working very closely with Egypt, with Saudi Arabia, with the United Arab Emirates, with the African Union, not only to try to get a cessation of hostilities and bring the parties together around that, and a way to verify the agreements that they hopefully will reach.
But also to get humanitarian assistance into the tens of millions of people who need it. We have an agreement now over the last couple of days, that critical access zero points in Sudan to allow humanitarian assistance to get in will be opened by both the SAF and the RSF, the two competing parties.
And we obviously need to see that move forward but that's critical in bringing life essential assistance to people who desperately need it and as we're doing that, of course, we're working on trying to get a broader agreement on a cessation of hostilities and their again, the work -- the coordination with Egypt has been absolutely critical. And I didn't want to leave this without telling you that this is something that we spent a fair bit of time on as well.
Thanks, everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanks, everybody. Thanks, guys.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN HOST: Hello. I'm Paula Newton in New York and you have been listening to Antony Blinken, who was giving us an update on ceasefire negotiations. He is now, as you can see, they're getting on U.S. Air Force plane in Doha.
He has been updating us on what are incredibly crucial negotiations. Jim Sciutto, thankfully, has been listening in with us from Tel Aviv.
Jim, I'm wondering what you're thinking, especially when it comes to the particulars of this, right? And again, Antony Blinken saying that, look, the schedules and the locations, he is saying of the IDF withdrawal from Gaza, key to the ceasefire agreement.
He's saying, look, I was in a meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu for three hours the other day, he has agreed to this. And yet, there has been some dispute about that.
SCIUTTO: Listen, he was giving an update there, but it's not clear there was much of an update --
