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Israel Launches Major Operation In Occupied West Bank; Today: Harris & Walz Campaign Together In South Georgia; Trump Team's Use Of Photography Leads To "Incident" At Arlington; Zelenskyy Previews Four- Stage "Victory Plan" For Ukraine; U.S. Officials On Edge Over Hacked Emails; Nvidia Has Wall Street Braced For Earnings Report. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired August 28, 2024 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:45]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: It is 8:00 p.m. in London, 3:00 p.m. in Atlanta, Georgia, 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.

The United Nations is warning Israel's overnight raids in the West Bank, which left ten people dead, risks seriously deepening the already catastrophic situation. In what it calls its most expansive offensive in the West Bank in years, Israel's foreign minister said the operation was to thwart Islamic-Iranian terrorist infrastructure.

Hamas has issued a call for a general mobilization and escalation of all forms of resistance and confrontation.

Video obtained by CNN shows Israeli bulldozers tearing up the streets. The Palestinian ministry of health reported Israeli forces obstructed ambulances and blocked roads to hospitals.

Since October, clashes in the West Bank become more frequent, including recent incidents of settler violence.

Two weeks ago, more than 70 armed settlers invaded the town in the north, firing live ammunition and tear gas at residents and set fire to several homes, cars as well. The IDF today called it a serious terror incident and said they failed by not arriving earlier.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond joins me now.

Tell us what is the state tonight, Jeremy, of the IDF operation in the West Bank. Is it ongoing?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, it certainly does appear to be and its not clear how much longer it will go on for, but earlier today, the Israeli military said that this operation was only in its first phase, suggesting that we could be looking at a multi-day operation in what has already appeared to be one of the largest Israeli military incursions into the West Bank in years. We have seen since October 7, the Israeli military nearly every day conducting raids in the West Bank on a Palestinian in militants.

But this is taking on a different scale and that's because were seeing Israeli troops, Israeli border police officers, many times lead in front by those Israeli D9 bulldozers, which are tearing up the streets, trying to prevent IEDs from harming their troops, going into the key cities of Jenin, as well as Tulkarem and the surrounding area.

So far, ten Palestinians have already been killed. It's not clear exactly how many of those are civilians versus combatants because the Palestinian ministry of health doesn't distinguish between the two. And we know that this is just the latest cycle of violence that we have seen in the West Bank, more than 600 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October 7. And the Israeli military says that they have gone in this time to these two cities because they say one Iran is flooding the West Bank with weapons, that's an assessment that's also been shared by the United States, and they also say that militants from these two cities have been carrying out attacks against Israeli troops, as well as civilians.

So we don't know how much longer this operation is going to last and what the final death toll will ultimately be. But it does appear to be relatively significant operation and one that we should note comes not long after that was there was that failed suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, which could have of course been much worse. That has been raised in the context of this operation as well -- Jim.

SCIUTTO: No question. Certainly a reminder of the potential threat. Jeremy Diamond, thanks so much.

Joining me now is Michael Oren. He's former Israeli ambassador to the United States.

Tell us what sparked this military operation in the West Bank. Was there a specific intelligence about Iran arming militants there? And was there specific intelligence about a terror plot of any kind?

MICHAEL OREN, FORMER ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO UNITED STATES: Well, first of all, generally this has been going on for quite a while. It didn't start last night or today. It's gone for several years as the Palestinian authority, which is in nominal control over areas like Jenin and Tulkarem has lost control, and terrorist groups like Islamic Jihad have taken over the town and they are using the town as a basis for attacking Israel. They have -- they've gotten tunnel accountability and rocket capabilities.

Now, it's not just that Israel claims Iran is trying to transform this area into forward base, Iran says they're trying to transform this area to forward base by bringing in massive amounts of ammunition, ammunition, and weapons into the Tulkarem, Jenin area.

[15:05:14]

So Israel really has no choice but to go in there. You have reports says ten people were killed, the ten people were terrorists, and get really have to say that. It's very important. SCIUTTO: Let me -- the trouble is it's happening at the same time in recent weeks that we've seen settlers attacking civilian Palestinians in the West Bank and you've had members of the sitting government speak in quite alarming terms about Palestinians in the West Bank.

How do those two things, how are they not separated by the current leadership here? But the counter-terror operations make sense. The others do not.

OREN: Good thing is I'm not a spokesman for that leadership. And there's no excuse for settler violence, just no excuse whatsoever. It's terrorism and it should be treated as terrorism the same way of Palestinian terrorism is treated. And it's a real problem that we have elements in the government who would support this type of vigilante violence against Palestinians.

It is deeply, deeply harmful to the state of Israel. We are fighting a multi-front war. Iran is trying to transform what we call Judean Samaria, the West Bank, into an active front. And by the way, we're standing up here on this roof, if the West Bank is right there and we won't be in rocket range, we'll be in rocket -- we'll be in rifle range if they take over that area.

So Israel has no choice but defend itself. It will be very helpful really, if we hadn't have members of the government which are actually undermining the legitimacy of our -- of our cause.

SCIUTTO: But it's beyond the statements. There's the policy over many years of taking territory away from the west bank through the expansion of settlements through multiple Israeli governments. And over the objection of multiple U.S. administrations, that the argument goes does not allow for management of that territory in a way that it can be a fledgling Palestinian state.

How does the expansion of the settlements policy, how does that, how can that be consistent with security in the West Bank if it's constantly being divvied up?

OREN: I can make a case, a long-term case going back to 1967, why Israel's borders had to be expanded. Pre-1967, just north of here, the width of this country was eight miles and on the other side of it was the Arab world, which could easily cut it.

SCIUTTO: But you know how the settlements have grown there. They've grown like influx its right in the midst of the West Bank.

OREN: But not everywhere, and I've been involved in the peace process for many years. I participated in the last round of negotiations with the Palestinians and I understand the settlement issue is a real problem for them in a way, its kind of an incentive for them to get -- to get moving, believe it or not. But if you look at the maps that were drawn on, but the possibility of some type of diplomatic solution there, and I was involved in several efforts, lines can be drawn.

Eighty-five percent of the settlements are what's known as a settlement block, right, and that area would always be a next Israel in almost any peace plan, including the piece plan of Barack Obama. Barack Obama talked about -- about land swaps.

SCIUTTO: Right.

OREN: Right, that we would take this area of the West Bank and we give the Palestinians something else. And, by the way, that same idea was adapted by the Trump peace plan, and accepted by Israel.

So, yes, I understand that the settlements are controversial. I understand the Palestinians really don't like them but it's not an insurmountable obstacle if there actually is a desire and a commitment to peace.

SCIUTTO: Let's talk about Gaza for a moment here. Do you have hope that there will be a ceasefire agreement given the existing the continuing differences?

OREN: I'd like to.

SCIUTTO: Uh-huh.

OREN: I'm not -- I'm not convinced that Mr. Sinwar, the head of Hamas, actually wants a deal. I'm not sure there's a deal on the table. I'm not even sure there's a table.

It's hard for us to wrap our minds around this, Jim, but we're dealing with a leadership that considers death be a reasonable objective in negotiations, they would prefer to die rather than concede or agree to -- agree to a deal that does not leave them in complete control of the Gaza strip, doesn't involve a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza strip and enable Hamas to emerge from the tunnels. Do the V sign, declare victory, take over the total area again and mount the next October 7, because that's what they sworn to do.

Short of that, I don't know why actually Sinwar would give up what he considers assets. Assets are the hostages.

SCIUTTO: Yeah, and to your point, I mean, it says Hamas leaders have spoken quite openly about the necessary death of Palestinians and their cause, his words.

Michael Oren, ambassador, thanks, always taking the time. Appreciate it.

OREN: Thanks, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Well, now to the 2024 campaign trail, Tim Walz was in Boston this morning appealing to the National Firefighters Union. This was the first major union to back Biden four years ago, but they've yet to endorse this time. J.D. Vance will make his pitch to the group tomorrow. Walz had this to say about the decision.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Words are cheap. Actions is all you should care about. Make sure you're counting on what was delivered. When Donald Trump was president, he blocked overtime benefits for millions of workers. He opposed efforts to raise the minimum wage and he even proposed slashing budgets for federal fire service program.

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Those are just simply facts. But look, it's not just what they've done. It's what they're going to do.

This is the big thing. One of the goals of their Project 2025 is to screw the middle class.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: From New England now going South, Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris are on their way to Georgia right now, their first joint visit to what is a critical closely contested battleground state in this election.

CNN is going with them for an exclusive first interview with the pair since Harris ascended to the top of the ticket, and, of course, chose Walz as her running mate. That interview will air tomorrow night.

Let's discuss all this with our panel. Michelle Baruchman of "The Atlanta Journal Constitution" and Dave Weigel of "Semafor".

Good to have you both on.

First, if I could begin with you, Michelle, given you cover that state there, is Georgia in play for the Democrats?

MICHELLE BARUCHMAN, POLITICS REPORTER, THE ATLANTA JOURNAL- CONSTITUTION: I think since Harris took over as the top of the ticket, there are certainly enthusiasm among top Democratic leaders that it is back in play. They were obviously backing Biden no matter what, but there seems to be a real chance, and I think that the Harris-Walz bus tour happening this week is an acknowledgement and a commitment from the campaign that they also see Georgia as an option or a path toward her victory.

SCIUTTO: Dave, to that point in this trip, Harris and Walz interestingly, they're going to campaign near Savannah, in rural Georgia. That is Trump country. In 2020, Trump carried rural parts of that state by 39 points despite losing the state overall. Is that a smart strategy? The battleground state director for the Harris campaign told reporters that they want to cut into those margins saying, quote, we have to show up in those places and also to not assume that we can't talk to those voters.

I mean, I suppose that the strategy is less to win those areas than to reduce the margin, the loss margin.

DAVE WEIGEL, POLITICS REPORTER, SEMAFOR: That's a strategy and it's credible because they did this in 2020. Raphael Warnock did this in 2022. They know how to limit their losses. They get wiped out in those counties, but they can know if they're counting on election tonight. We instead of losing this by 60, we lost by 55. Each inch matters. They also have a campaign and Donald Trump is now had to face one of

these three times. They have a campaign that does generate real excitement when it visits these areas. Biden couldn't because of COVID. Hillary Clinton didn't organically. And they're testing that now, how excited can they get voters who were not sure how much they cared about this election, but live in those places that might be reachable.

SCIUTTO: Now, let's be fair, not just the 2020 election. They won Georgia. They won Senate races in Georgia to the Democrats.

WEIGEL: Right. We did hear Walz reference project 2025 at the end of his speech, at the end of that clip from his speech there to union workers as a blueprint for Trump's economic plan today, the Harris campaign put out a new ad, which is going to run in battleground states like Georgia, specifically on Project 2025 and its idea to eliminate the Department of Education.

That, by the way, is something Trump himself has endorsed. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AD NARRATOR: It's called project 2025, a 922-page blueprint to make Donald Trump the most powerful president ever, overhauling the Department of Justice, giving Trump the unchecked power to seek vengeance, eliminating the Department of Education and defunding K-12 schools.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Michelle, is that an issue that drives voters in Georgia.

BARUCHMAN: I would say the top issues that Georgia voters are thinking about are the same ones nationwide. The economy is number one, the cost of living, affordability. Among Republican voters in Georgia, immigration tends to be high in the list, and among Democratic voters, it tends to be abortion and health care is number two.

I've been talking to Democratic candidates in some of these deep red counties. They know that they don't necessarily have a huge chance of winning, but as you mentioned, there's going to be a governor race and a race for a Senate seat in two years. And so, Democrats are kind of looking at this long game and some of these candidates, they're taught there at the Democratic candidates are not afraid to talk about -- to talk about abortion with voters.

When it comes to school choice, which is a educational issue that's something that is not necessarily on partisan lines in Georgia, and really impact you're in a rural county. What your public school system looks like.

SCIUTTO: Dave, Democrats are notably outspending Republicans on the airwaves in Georgia since Biden particularly dropped out of the race. Polls are suggesting Harris has now made this state competitive in a way, Biden did not.

[15:15:02]

Do the numbers support that?

WEIGEL: Yes. This is part of that Sun Belt quartet of states as it relates to Arizona, North Carolina, Georgia that were falling out of place for Joe Biden and are competitive again. And the Trump campaign schedule, if not, its investments right now, the way they're acting verifies that. They have, they -- can win Pennsylvania and lock up most scenarios, but if they lose all the Sun Belt states, they can.

So they're taking this very seriously. And if they don't have the money in right now, look at the super PACs, the Sheldon Adelson's funding, TBD, Elon Musk funding, there are well-heeled Republican organizations that are going to go on the air in these markets and started attacking what they think is attackable.

But they needed a couple of weeks, I think to get themselves to the reality that the state was not competitive and now is.

SCIUTTO: It will be remarkable to watch and it's only two months away.

Michelle Baruchman, Dave Weigel, thanks so much to both of you.

WEIGEL: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: "A despicable individual," that is what Donald Trumps campaign manager is calling an official at Arlington National Cemetery after an altercation during the former president's visit there last week. The dispute is seemingly over political photography at a military burials site. Trump was there marking the anniversary of 13 U.S. service members killed at Kabul airports Abbey Gate during the Afghanistan withdrawal.

CNN's Alayna Treene has more details for us.

Alayna, NPR originally reported the Trump campaign officials verbally, verbally, and physically accosted a staff member at Arlington.

Can you explain what we know?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: We can. Well, first of all, yes. NPR had reported that the Trump campaign has pushed back heavily on that, saying that that is not true. We've also, of course, reached out and that have received a statement from Arlington National Cemetery. They did not go into the type of nature of the incident that is the term that both sides have used, but they had both said that there was an incident that had occurred.

That is one of the things they can agree on. But from there, that's where it gets a little bit dicey and it becomes a he said/she said type of situation. I'm going to break down for you what we know.

So Donald Trump, on Monday, had participated in the third anniversary marking, you know, the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, as well as the attack on service members at Abbey Gate at Kabul Airport. And so that was what he was there for.

Now, the wreath laying ceremony, I'm told hold was not necessarily where the incident happened or what is in question around this controversy. Instead, it was when Donald Trump later visited the burial site of some of these recent fallen soldiers and had laid flowers down there, and that was caught on film.

You actually saw Chris LaCivita, one of Donald Trumps co-campaign managers, share some of that video. That is where I'm told from my conversations with the Trump campaign and also from what we have heard from the cemetery staff. That is apparently where the incident had happened and someone had tried to block members of Donald Trump's team for moving forward with their plans.

We have heard from both sides. I'm going to read from you first what we have heard from Chris LaCivita and then I'll share what the Arlington Cemetery has said. Chris LaCivita had written, quote, President Trump was there on the invitation of the Abbey Gate Gold Star families to honor their loved ones who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country, for despicable individual to physically prevent President Trump's team from accompanying him to this solace -- solemn event is a disgrace and does not deserve to represent the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery.

So really strong words there I will say from Chris LaCivita, heavily pushing back on what had happened. This is what we have heard from Arlington National Cemetery. They share this in a statement. We have obtained it. They wrote, quote, federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators, or any other persons attending for purposes or in direct support of a partisan political candidate's campaign.

So, again, we're hearing different things. I think a lot is still unclear. We do know that this staffer who had approached the Trump campaign on Monday has filed what were -- what were -- they're calling an incident report. We're still waiting to learn more information about this.

But what is clear is that the Arlington National Cemetery is backing up their staffer. They're saying that photography is not allowed particularly at that site. It's known as Section 60 at that burial site. The Trump campaign saying, you know, we -- they're arguing that they didn't know this or that they believed that they had permission and that it was wrong or inappropriate for staffer to try and interrupt them and block some of Donald Trump's staff from being with him for that moment.

So we don't have a lot of answers right now. I do think this is something we're going to learn more about.

SCIUTTO: I mean, wouldn't that make clear though?

TREENE: Excuse me? SCIUTTO: If federal law prohibits -- if federal law prohibits photography at that site, why is it a dispute?

[15:20:04]

Is it the answer there that they should not have taken photos of that?

TREENE: Well, the dispute that they're arguing, Jim, that Donald Trumps campaign at least is that they were given -- and we've seen actually Steven Chung, his spokesman for the Trump campaign, shared an emailed them saying that they could have photography, they could have media.

The question is though, you know, they were allowed to have that at the wreath laying ceremony. This was a different type of event where Donald Trump went to lay those flowers and I think that is really what is in question here.

So, look, I recognize -- I think we're going to learn more when this report comes out. We have also heard the Trump campaign argued that they have video of this staffer and the, quote/unquote, incident that occurred.

We'll see if that comes out as well, but I don't think this is going to be resolved today. I think we have to really see what -- what this report says, and I think we kind of learn more from there.

SCIUTTO: Well, the allegation is it uses a campaign event and, right, it was the campaign director who took the video.

Alayna Treene, thanks so much for reporting.

Another reminder tomorrow, you can watch Vice President Harris's first sit-down interviews since President Biden dropped out of the race. She and the vice presidential nominee, Tim Walz, join CNN's Dana Bash. Together, that airs at 9:00 p.m. East Coast, U.S. Time.

Still ahead, a four-stage victory plan -- how Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hopes to bring an end to the Russia's years-long deadly war. I'll be joined by the deputy Pentagon press secretary next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: Welcome back.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Kyiv's surprise incursion into Russia's Kursk region is the leading edge of a new plan for victory over Russia. He says he will present his plan to end the bloody two-and-a-half-year-old war to President Biden at a U.N. meeting next month.

Joining me now to discuss, deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh.

[15:25:01] Thanks so much for taking the time tonight.

SABRINA SINGH, DEPUTY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: Of course.

SCIUTTO: We're now two weeks, little over two weeks into this advance into Russia, a surprise, no question. And Ukrainian forces still seem to be advancing.

I wonder, does the U.S. support this Ukrainian incursion into Russian territory?

SINGH: Well, thanks, Jim, so much for having me tonight. Look, what we're working with Ukraine on is figuring out exactly how Kursk fits into their strategic battlefield objectives. We are going to support Ukraine for as long as it takes, the president has been very clear about that since the beginning.

So, we are supporting Ukraine on the battlefield. And, of course, Kursk is a part of that. But we are trying to learn more about their operations and how they do fit into their long-term goals. The secretary has regular conversations with his counterpart, Mr. Umerov, so we're continuing to engage.

But again, our -- we want to get a better understanding of how this knits together into their strategic objectives. And ultimately, of course, we're going to continue to support Ukraine with military assistance packages, but we are working through some more questions on how this fits into the overall battlefield.

SCIUTTO: So President Zelenskyy says he will make that clear attempt to make it clear to President Biden with his pitch to end the war. As you know, Ukrainian leaders have been pushing for some time for the U.S. to lift restrictions on the use of U.S. weapons to strike targets inside Russia, and given what we've seen in the last several days, just relentless airstrikes often on civilian targets across Ukraine, is the administration reconsidering those restrictions?

SINGH: Right now, our policy hasn't changed. We want to see Ukraine to be successful on the battlefield, but our policy hasn't changed.

We have adapted and we have been able to, you know, as the -- as the battlefield has changed and as Ukraine has been successful in pushing Russia back, we've expanded our policy to allow for those counter-fire strikes. We're seeing that in that -- in that Kursk region and in the Sumy region. That's exactly us adapting to the battlefield.

But no policy changes to announce when it comes to deep strike capabilities for Ukraine, that policy does remain the same. And we are working with Ukraine to ensure that they have what they need on the battlefield, particularly in the east. We know that fight is really dug in and that Donbas area. So we're continuing to get military assistance to Ukraine.

You know, we roll out almost weekly presidential drawdown packages for the Ukrainians. And, of course, we have the long, long term support for them as well through our USAI packages. So we're continuing to support Ukraine with those packages and, you

know are committed to doing that for the long term.

SCIUTTO: The administration has expressed concern about escalation going back really two-and-a-half years since the start of this full- scale invasion. And with each additional weapons system, right, there were initially there was reluctance to send those weapons systems, whether it'd be HIMARS, ATACMS, et cetera and with each system as it goes in and now F-16s, that escalation hasn't happened.

And as you know, there are many U.S. allies, particularly in Eastern Europe, who feel that the risk of escalation has been exaggerated. Do you -- do you consider that as potentially true that perhaps the U.S. has overestimated that, and in doing so, has tied Ukraine's hands to some degree to defend itself?

SINGH: You know, Jim, I don't. I don't think Ukraine's hands are tied. They have proven time and again, how successful they can be on the battlefield with what we've been able to provide them.

And I think it's really, really important to remember that we are providing -- it's not just us that's providing security assistance to Ukraine, we have over 50 countries also supporting Ukraine through the Ukraine defense contact group with the secretary leading that on an almost monthly basis. And they have other capabilities such as Storm Shadows, SCALP capabilities provided by other countries that have to knit together and work together on the battlefield.

So they actually have what they need to be successful. But we know this is a tough fight. We know what's happening in the east and in that southern region. The Russians are really dug in on their defensive lines. And so, we're working with them to make sure that they continue to get the support that they need from the United States.

SCIUTTO: As you know, I'm speaking to you tonight from Tel Aviv. I've been in Israel reporting for the past two weeks.

SINGH: Yeah.

SCIUTTO: And as you know, there was a great deal of anticipation about Hezbollah's plans to strike Israel, decisively. Now, we saw an attack on Sunday morning, largely repelled by Israel with some help from the U.S.

Do you believe -- does the U.S. believe that Hezbollah will strike again or that that threat has now dissipated?

[15:30:02]

SINGH: Look, I can't predict the future. And I can't say either way. That's really decision that, you know, Lebanese Hezbollah would have to make.

We don't want to see it come to that. We don't want to see another attack. What we did, what we have done is really send a message of deterrence by sending two carrier strike groups to the region.

So, our force posture and a presence is very well-known. We were there, of course, and protection of our forces, but also will stand with Israel in their self-defense should they need that.

But we don't want to see a regional war. We don't want to see things escalate. What we want to see is the ceasefire deal come to fruition. We want to see our hostages come home. That's really what we're working towards.

And you know, as you know, because you're there, our teams are working on that around the clock.

SCIUTTO: And, of course, those carrier strike groups remain in the region.

Sabrina Singh, thanks so much for taking the time this evening.

SINGH: Thanks, Jim.

SCIUTTO: And coming up this hour, new exclusive CNN reporting inside how an Iranian hacking group has been targeting U.S. officials, causing concern among intelligence and secured security agencies ahead of the 2024 election.

Plus, U.S. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi joins me on how certain Internet routers maybe vote more vulnerable to hacking by China, something you need to know, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: Welcome back.

CNN exclusive reporting out today, revealing new details about a hacking group, which experts believe works on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard, including how that group targeted former members of both the Trump and Biden administrations over several years.

[15:35:00]

Now, there is concern the group is turning its attention to influencing the 2024 election.

CNN's Zach Cohen is part of the reporting team that broke the story.

So tell us exactly how these hackers operated and penetrated or attempted to penetrate these Biden and Trump officials?

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah, Jim, obviously, the U.S. intelligence community disclosing earlier this month that Iranian hackers successfully breached Donald Trump's campaign through one of his longtime confidants, Roger Stone. But we're learning that Iranian hackers also used eerily similar tactics to target a former Trump administration official back two years ago.

Now this is -- I want to take you inside this operation because these are details that have not been disclosed publicly before, but this operation in 2020 targeting a former Trump official that was close to former national security adviser, John Bolton, and Jim, as you know, John Bolton is not Iran's favorite former U.S. official. He's actually on that list of assassination targets because of his role in the killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani.

But Iranian hackers penetrating and a personal email account of one of John Bolton's former confidence back two years ago, then impersonating that former official in an attempt to further -- cast a further net and hack other accounts of hard line D.C.-based think tankers.

And this all speaks to a broader intelligence, collecting operation using cyber tools that the intelligence community is now warning. Iran is trying to use to influence the 2024 presidential election. And we're learning too that back in just this April, a former Biden administration official who specializes in Middle East issues and has particular insight on issues related to Israel, was also successfully targeted by Iran -- this Iranian hacking group as well with a similar spear phishing email.

And I want to go back and read just one of the emails that this hacking group sent out from the former Trump official. It said, I am -- they were posing as them trying to get feedback on manuscripts as I am close to finishing the manuscript and have begun asking experts like yourselves to review the chapters. The email did contain a link that purported to take someone to those chapters. It actually had malware in it that would have given the hackers access to further email accounts.

SCIUTTO: Yes, it's amazing that old blunt tool of a spear phishing email basically comes from a fake account. You click on the link and the malware is on your computer. It's been around for years, it's a reminder be safe with what links you click on.

Zach Cohen, thanks so much.

Joining me now is Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi. He's a Democrat from Illinois, ranking member on the Select Committee on China.

Congressman, thanks so much for joining us tonight.

REP. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI (D-IL): Thank you, Jim. Thank you so much.

SCIUTTO: I want to get to Chinese hacking, but given we just reported details about a Iran's efforts to hack both the Trump and Harris presidential campaigns, does it strike you that these efforts are still relatively blunt and simple? Because -- I mean, the spear phishing emails is old as email, right? I mean, it's exactly how they penetrated the Clinton campaign. Russian hackers did in 2016.

I mean, is it -- is it both alarming, but also comforting at the same time in that the tools are frankly not that complicated, sophisticated?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Well, I don't know, that it's comforting. I think they used those tools because they're still effective. And I think they have other tools beyond that, which they might use as well. But there's one aspect of what the Iranians are doing, which is especially distressing or disturbing, which is they are trying to track the location and movements of certain individuals whom they want to intimidate, harass, and in some cases, harm.

And we know that there was a plot to kill John Bolton which was charged in August 2022 and we know that they're also after Donald Trump. And so, there's a certain more sinister or darker aspect to what the Iranians are doing, than the packing and dumping information.

SCIUTTO: Interesting. So you're saying the tracking attempt is so that they could follow them and potentially attack them?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: That's right. In fact, there was a think tank in Washington, D.C. which tried to compile the list of these types of activities by the Iranian regime. They said there were 115 such activities since -- since Soleimani was killed in January 2020. That's more than half of the types of these activities that have happened since the Iranian Revolution in 1979.

SCIUTTO: Do you believe that tech companies are good faith partners in the effort to counteract this kind of interference? Yesterday, the Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote a letter to the House Judiciary Committee where he said he regrets investing in and promoting election infrastructure because it could appear partisan.

[15:40:08]

I mean, we know what influence these outside actors had or attempted to have in 2016 election in particular, but also 2020. I mean, are they partners in this or are they resisting?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: I think that increasingly since 2016, certainly the 2020 election, the 2022 midterms as well, you know, these companies have been partners with the federal government, as well as local governments in trying to guard against, you know, for instance, Russian bots posing as real people or Russian state actors posing as real people and spreading disinformation on there social media platforms. I think that's a good thing that they have that partnership.

At the same time, I understand why Zuckerberg would be concerned about somehow appearing as though he's partisan in terms of his investments in protecting election infrastructure.

SCIUTTO: Let's talk about China now. You're, of course, on the Chinese Select Committee. "The Washington Post" reported this week that Chinese hackers breached U.S. Internet service providers in recent months, including major providers serving millions of customers. "The Post" says their targets are believed to include members of the government and the military.

I mean, thinking about getting into servers is once you're in the servers, you can access a whole host of individuals, right, not just the one person you may target with say, a spear phishing email. How sophisticated were these -- were these hacks? KRISHNAMOORTHI: They're pretty sophisticated. They would basically implant kind of malware in Internet service providers that would initiate a DNC attack, a domain names save service attack which basically means it would redirect people away from the website that they otherwise thought they were going to other fake websites, which would then capture personal identifiable information, passwords, and other really important information so that they could then access other networks that these people are on.

So it's very sophisticated and this type of DNS attack is kind of a hallmark of Chinese hacking.

SCIUTTO: No question. Well, Congressman Krishnamoorthi, we appreciate the work you're doing on this. Thanks so much for taking the time.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Thank you so much, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Coming up, Wall Street, bracing for a quarterly earnings report from chip-making giant Nvidia. That's expected just after the closing bell. Richard Quest will be with me next to explain why this is so important for the market.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:46:01]

SCIUTTO: Chipmaker and leader in artificial intelligence Nvidia is releasing its quarterly earnings report in just a few minutes, much- anticipated. It's going to come right after the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

CNN business editor-at-large and host of "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS", Richard Quest, joins me now.

Richard, I feel like so much of the market has been driven by this one stock. Tell us what we're expecting in just a few minutes.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR AT LARGE: We don't know is the short answer. If Nvidia was to give a surprise either on the downside or the upside, the market will react in the after hours trading, though the issue here, Jim, is that Nvidia has taken on an outsized proportion of importance because it is a representative of A.I., it is the bellwether for how artificial intelligence and technology is doing.

With all the problems of chip design, manufacture, you've got sanctions and tariffs, you've got issues of just getting the thing to work, all companies cutting back, how's the company petition of Amazon, Google, and the like, all doing creating their own chips for A.I.

So, Nvidia like UPS and some sort of ways about the general economy, Nvidia is now the bellwether for technology and A.I. and these results, I'll be blunt, Jim, these results are taking on a ridiculous level of importance, bearing in mind it's one-quarter, one snapshot.

SCIUTTO: Good for you for providing some perspective. I guess we're 13 minutes away.

QUEST: Yeah.

SCIUTTO: To CNN next for more from Richard.

QUEST: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: More coverage of Nvidia earnings on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS". It's a good show.

QUEST: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: Just after the break, my visit to a new school in Israel for students uprooted from their home school just south of the Lebanese border. They've now left the evacuation zone, but they still remain within range of rockets and missiles from the north.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: You're looking at live pictures there of Vice President Harris and Governor Tim Walz just arriving in Georgia for campaigning events there.

Meanwhile, overseas here, last weekend's cross-border attacks between Israel and Hezbollah came as students in Israel are preparing to return to class. But northern Israel where large areas are still under evacuation orders and have been for nearly a year schools remain close.

[15:50:07]

So I traveled to one school which was forced to open an entirely new campus, 20 miles south. So as we found, the risk remains.

Har Vagai School will welcome more than 1,000 students when it opens its doors. Teachers and students are both hopeful and apprehensive about what the New Year will bring.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO (voice-over): On kibbutz Dafna, less than two miles from the Lebanese border, students at the Har Vagai School fled just after October 7, quickly abandoning their lockers. Those mandatory evacuation orders came almost a year ago now, yet the threat remains more present than ever. Last month, a rocket burst through the roof of the school's gym.

And just this past weekend, the most intense cross-fire along the border this year.

RAVAIT ROSENTAL, HEAD OF HAR VAGAI SCHOOL IN NORTHERN ISRAEL: This is the sign of our school. It's written Har Vagai School. And those three buildings hours are ours.

SCIUTTO: Now as a new school year begins, head of school Ravait Rosental has built an entirely new school 20 miles south, for more than one 1,000 displaced students. Instead of a tree line campus set around a babbling brook, classes will take place this year in once empty warehouses. On September 1st, they hope, a new school year will begin here.

ROSENTAL: A lot of students are depressed. Teachers are not in a very good situation and they're waiting to come to school to see each other because they want to fill back our community Har Vagai.

SCIUTTO: The school is outside the evacuation zone in the north, but it's still within range of rockets and missiles and drones from Lebanon. So it has air raid shelters like this one. In fact, 18 of them surrounding the school, like all these shelters, reinforced walls, reinforced doors like this, and close enough to the classrooms. So the students can get here very quickly in the event of incoming fire.

But the shelters cannot shield the students and teachers from the stress of war.

ROSENTAL: We're afraid. I cannot say that they're not afraid. But I know that me and my team will do the best to make good for the kids.

ZIV ZINGER, HAR VAGAI HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR: A few days ago, I woke up at 8:00 (ph) a.m. from the rockets and they were very close.

SCIUTTO: Seventeen-year-old Ziv Zinger is going into his final year of high school.

ZINGER: If I kind of cheated, how you feel -- you feel very connected to the old school, you know, we had grass and where the river flowing through the school and it doesn't feel like home.

SCIUTTO: The goal then is some measure of stability. The same classmates, same teachers, same subjects, even without the same sense of safety.

Meirav Atmor is sending her 12-year-old son.

MEIRA ATMOR, MOTHER OF HAR VAGAI STUDENT: It's routine. It's something that keep them safe in their mentality. But you go to school every day, you'll see your friends, you see your teacher. I think it's very important.

SCIUTTO: One promising sign of that routine, Metan, just beginning seventh grade, tells us he's more nervous about his classes than the rockets for Ravid. The school is her contribution to a way forward.

ROSENTAL: Very angry about to a lot of things going on in Israel, but every mission now to take care of more than 1,000 students and 170 teachers, must do the best now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO: Doing their best to open for another school year.

Well, the SpaceX Polaris launch has been delayed a second time now, now faces a new flight complication. The Polaris launch was scrubbed due to weather after a prior delay due to leaks of helium. Polaris needs a five-day window to launch and then land in the Atlantic off the coast of Florida.

But now, in addition to the weather issue, federal regulators have grounded the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. There is an investigation into a recent landing attempt by the rocket on a drone ship at sea. The investigation prohibits the rocket from flying while it's underway on upcoming missions.

Before we go, another reminder to tune in tomorrow to CNN's exclusive interview with Democratic nominee for president, Kamala Harris, and vice presidential nominee Tim Walz. Their conversation with our Dana Bash airs at 9:00 p.m. on the East Coast of the U.S.

And thanks so much for joining me today. I'm Jim Sciutto reporting from Tel Aviv.

"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" with that earnings news is up next.