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Quds Hospital To Cease Operations Within Hours; Growing Resistance To U.S. Support For Israel War Efforts; FBI Seizes New York Mayor Eric Adams' Phones and IPad; House Speaker Mike Johnson Faces Looming Federal Shutdown. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired November 11, 2023 - 06:00   ET

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

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[06:00:30]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to CNN This Morning. It is Saturday, November 11. I'm Amara Walker.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell. Thank you for joining us. Here's what we're watching for you this morning. Aid workers in Gaza say they are in desperate need of supplies including fuel, and they warn they could be forced to shut down operations without them.

WALKER: And as calls for a ceasefire grow, we are learning of more explosions near hospitals sheltering thousands of people.

BLACKWELL: The FBI seized the cell phones and iPads belonging to New York Mayor Eric Adams as part of a federal investigation into his campaign's fundraising. The dramatic way it happened and what the investigators are looking for.

WALKER: Federal investigators are looking into suspicious letters sent to public officials in half a dozen states across the country. At least one was laced with fentanyl what detectives are looking into to piece together where they came from.

BLACKWELL: We're learning more about the deal that got actors off the picket lines and back to work what this deal ultimately came down to just a hit. Oh, coming up on CNN This Morning.

WALKER: We began this morning in Gaza with a stark warning from the Red Cross that the healthcare system there has passed the point of no return. The Palestine Red Crescent says a hospital in Gaza City is just hours away from closing. The Al-Quds Hospital will soon run out of fuel, putting the lives of many patients at risk.

Doctors there are already treating patients in the dark as you see there. One humanitarian group warns 500 patients could lose vital medical care and people in the ICU and infants and incubators will likely die.

Meantime, Doctors Without Borders have lost all contact with their staff at the largest hospital in Gaza City. That would be Al-Shifa Hospital. Multiple projectiles hit Al-Shifa yesterday.

The IDF has denied responsibility claiming it was a misfired projectile from a terrorist organization, something that did happen at a different hospital on October 17.

VICTOR: The air bombardment in Gaza though continues this morning heavy artillery fire and explosions could be heard as the sun rose over Gaza City today.

As the Israeli military pushes in and the urban warfare begins in the streets is becoming much more difficult for civilians who are searching for safety.

Israel is under immense pressure from the leaders around the world to protect the civilians. It has agreed to allow a small window each day to let people escape northern Gaza, a seven-hour window is open right now. Let's go now to CNN Ed Lavandera is in Tel Aviv. So we've just got new information at the Al-Shifa Hospital is surrounded. What have you learned?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is coming from the Director of the Health Ministry that the Hamas controlled health ministry they're inside of Gaza, saying that Israeli soldiers have surrounded that hospital.

And of course, this is, as you mentioned, the largest hospital in Gaza and for a longtime IDF officials have said that this particular hospital has been one of their main focuses because they believe that it is one of the primary hospitals that Hamas military fighters uses to protect their underground tunnel system from which the military operations of Hamas are coordinated from so that is why this particular hospital getting so much attention, but the director of the Health Ministry saying that the hospital has been surrounded by Israeli soldiers.

Doctors Without Borders say they have lost contact with their medical teams inside of that hospital and describe it as a, quote, catastrophic situation that there have been attacks on the infrastructure. Apparently, electricity has been lost there. So, very dangerous situation and moments here on the ground for everybody inside that hospital.

Hospitals in recent weeks have become a place of shelter and refuge for many of the Gazan civilians who have been fleeing their homes to escape the bombings. So, very intense moments there this morning and this situation continues develop.

All of this also happening as we are hearing from a U.S. senior official saying that there are talks in regard to the hostages that they're toxic suggesting that there could be a day's long pause of a ceasefire in exchange for a large number of hostages.

[06:05:15]

Now, whether or not this will come to fruition is very hard to say. According to this senior official, there have been talks like this before and everything has stalled out or fallen apart. But it also comes at a time where Israeli officials continue to say that they believe the way to release the hostages is to continue maximizing the military pressure on Hamas fighters there inside of Gaza.

But there's also, Victor and Amara, growing skepticism that this strategy will ensure the safe release of all of these hostages. Some of the family members of hostages released a statement yesterday saying that this strategy of going after Hamas militarily and saving the hostages isn't going to work.

In fact, the statement went on to say that victory should not be viewed as the assassination of the military, the Hamas military leaders that carried out the October's 7th attack. Instead, it should be viewed as releasing all of the hostages safely and alive and back to Israel.

BLACKWELL: Some important reporting there. Ed Lavendera for us in Tel Aviv. Thank you.

American diplomats in the Middle east gave a really stark warning to the Biden administration over its continued support for Israel. And resistance is growing within the U.S., too.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the New York City Police Department.

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WALKER: Protesters marched through the streets of New York City last night, snarling traffic, blocking roads, and they were demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. Joining us now is CNN's Arlette Saenz. Good morning to you, Arlette. How are U. S. Officials mediating this?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOSUE CORRESPONDENT: Well, President Biden is grappling with his growing frustration around the globe and here at home over the U.S. support for Israel at a time when the civilian death toll in Gaza has been mounting.

But we have seen this subtle but notable shift in language from the administration over the course of the last day. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaking in his most blunt terms yet against the number of Palestinians who have been killed in this conflict. He told reporters traveling yesterday that there are far too many Palestinians who have been killed and that more needs to be done to protect them.

Now this comes as the administration has long talked about Israel's right to defend itself, its ability to make its own decisions about its military campaign. But the White House has really been grappling with this growing discontent over that civilian death toll and the way that the U.S. has supported the Israeli decisions.

Now this comes as the U.S. has been pushing for those humanitarian pauses. The White House said on Thursday that they had secured an agreement from Israel to allow for a four-hour humanitarian pause to move civilians, get more aid in. That is something that we have seen play out over the course of the past few days.

But the administration is also receiving very stark warnings about the discontent in the Arab world. There was a diplomatic cable obtained by CNN that was sent by a U.S. official, American diplomat in the embassy in Oman, that warned about the Arab world frustration with the fact that the U.S. continues to support Israel even as these death tolls are mounting.

That cable said, quote -- that the administration is, quote, losing U.S.-Arab publics for generations. They also said that there is this view in the Arab world that this U.S. support for Israel is seen as, quote, material and moral culpability in what they consider to be possible war crimes.

These officials really warning of the long-term impact that this could have with the Arab world as this campaign continues. But the president is also seeing this frustration firsthand here at home, traveling out in the country. Earlier in the week, he was at an event in Illinois interrupted by an audience member calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. There are pro-Palestinian protesters lining the streets outside of his events.

The White House has been trying to make clear that they have been pushing for more to be done, pushing for those humanitarian pauses. The question is how much longer it will take to try to get some steps put in place to try to prevent these civilian casualties from piling up even more.

WALKER: All right. Yes, the pressure is growing. Arlette Saenz, thank you very much. To talk more about this is retired Major General Mick Ryan from the Australian army. He's also the author of the book "War Transformed: The Future of 21st Century Great Power, Competition and Conflict." General, thank you so much for your time this morning.

We'll get to those warnings from these U.S. diplomats in just a bit, but I do want to begin with Gaza's largest hospital, Al-Shifa, which is reportedly surrounded by the IDF. We're hearing from staff there that they are basically trapped inside. They're seeing tanks outside. It has under reported bombardment.

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The IDF saying the Hamas has embedded itself under the hospital. Do you, General, expect the civilians will be allowed to evacuate? And how will combatants be separated from the non-combatants?

MAJOR GEN. MICK RYAN, AUSTRALIAN ARMY (RET.): Well, good morning, from what we've seen the Israelis have advanced on the hospital from the north and south, it'll be very difficult to evacuate those who are remaining, many of the patients couldn't be moved. So as much as the Israelis want to capture this hospital, they're probably going to catch up with a lot of doctors and a lot of patients there. And they will be responsible for their safety and well-being.

WALKER: And how, I mean, I guess logistically when they're on the ground, I mean, how do they go about doing that? RYAN: Well, they're going to have to bring in additional support people to look after them, and it's I can't evacuate them out of danger, they will have to protect them and they will have to look after from that is, under the laws of war, you have to protect civilians under your care and those people in that hospital. If they capture it will be under their care even if there is a Hamas command control center underneath which is yet to be established.

WALKER: So you expect the IDF will go out of its way to separate the combatants from the non-combatants and get the civilians evacuated.

RYAN: If they can, they will certainly try and do that. But they certainly want to capture what they believe is a command-and-control center under this hospital. That will be a significant decapitation exercise for the leadership of Hamas. And I think the Israelis expected would be an information warfare win for them as well.

WALKER: I do want to place down for you from the Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who spoke on Friday, in New Delhi, he was on a tour through the Middle East and Asia. And it was the first time that we heard this direct condemnation of the civilian dots in Gaza. Listen.

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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Far too many Palestinians have been killed, for too many who suffered these past weeks. And we want to do everything possible to prevent harm to them, and to maximize the assistance that gets to them.

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WALKER: What is your take on this, what really is a notable shift in messaging from the White House? Do you believe that it's aimed at placating the growing anger that we're seeing here at home and abroad? Or is it more for, you know, Israel and increasing pressure to, you know, I guess, change his military strategy?

RYAN: I think it's a bit of both of those things. I mean, United States has forces deployed through the Middle East who have come under attack on dozens of occasions that wants to mitigate against those kinds of attacks. The U.S. reputation in the Middle East is suffering because of this.

But I think to the administration wants the Israeli military to soften its approach towards civilians. Under the laws of war, you're supposed to be proportionate, indiscriminate in engaging these kinds of targets that might kill civilians, and there's a moral imperative to reduce civilian casualties.

Finally, I think the administrations are looking beyond the military face, and they probably think it's going to be hard to establish an enduring peace in Gaza, with so many civilians have been killed, not removing the conditions that have made them Hamas flourish in the past.

WALKER: Yes. And as civilian deaths continue to increase in the last count was over 11,000 from the Hamas controlled health ministry. I do want to ask you about these cables. A stark warning is issued by U.S. diplomats around the Mid East basically underscoring that there's a lot of anger over Americans support for Israel. Do you think that the U.S. or how do you think the US is taking this into account for its next steps?

RYAN: Well, it's certainly part of the consideration, but the U.S. also supports Israel. And it also supports the normalization of Israel's relationships with a range of countries in the Middle East who might have put those things on pause publicly, but in the background, they will be still keen to normalize their relationships with Israel at some point in time.

So whilst these cables are important, they will inform the way forward. They're just one of many things that the administration will be considering.

WALKER: Major General appreciate your time. Mick Ryan, thank you.

RYAN: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Still ahead. We'll tell you about the campaign fundraising investigation that prompted the FBI to seize electronic devices belonging to New York Mayor Eric Adams. Plus, federal officials are investigating suspicious envelopes containing powdery substances sent to elections officials across the country. More on that coming up.

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BLACKWELL: CNN has learned federal agents seized electronic devices belonging to New York Mayor Eric Adams Sources tell CNN FBI agents approached the mayor in public on Monday evening. And that happened a few days after federal agents raided the home of Adams' chief fundraiser.

WALKER: It's all part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of illegal donations from the Turkish government during Adams' 2021 campaign. CNN national correspondent Gloria Pazmino has the details.

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GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, Victor, Amara, it is certainly a significant escalation of the investigation into whether the mayor's 2021 campaign conspired with foreign nationals to help funnel donations into campaign coffers.

As you know foreign nationals are not allowed to make political contributions here in the United States. And last week, we learned that the mayor's chief fundraiser was raided by the FBI. Now, she has not been accused of any wrongdoing. But now almost a week later, we have learned that FBI agents approached Mayor Eric Adams on a New York City street and presented him with a warrant to seize his electronic devices. The mayor was delivering a speech at a public engagement on Monday

evening and after he left that engagement sources close to the mayor tell me that the FBI agents approached him in public.

[06:20:06]

They asked his NYPD detail to step aside. And then they got into the mayor's city issued vehicle and presented him with this warrant. The mayor then turned over his devices, two cell phones and an iPad. And then he went home later that evening, and collected more electronic devices, including two old phones and turned them over to the federal authorities.

Now, we should make it clear that the mayor has also not been accused of any wrongdoing. And here's what he had to say in his statement. He said, as a former member of law enforcement, I expect all members of my staff to follow the law and fully cooperate with any sort of investigation. And I will continue to do exactly that. I have nothing to hide.

Now following the raid of the mayor's top fundraiser last week, the campaign conducted a review of records to determine if there had been any sort of wrongdoing, they apparently came up with some information showing that there was wrongdoing by one person that's according to my sources close to the mayor.

What is less clear is whether or not that wrongdoing amounts to criminal activity that will be determined by the investigation. But this is certainly getting closer and closer to Mayor Eric Adams. Victor, Amara.

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BLACKWELL: Gloria Pazmino, thanks so much. CNN has reached out to the FBI, declined to comment on this. Now let's bring in CNN political commentator and Spectrum News political anchor Errol Louis. Errol, good morning to you. You are the right person to talk about this because you cover New York politics very closely.

WALKER: Oh, no.

BLACKWELL: All right. Well, maybe we'll get Errol back and we can talk about this case.

WALKER: You look colorful today.

BLACKWELL: It is.

WALKER: (INAUDIBLE) is not there.

BLACKWELL: He was red. He is ready.

WALKER: Looks green, blue purple. All right. This morning election officials nationwide are on high alert following the discovery of suspicious letters sent to multiple election offices. The FBI has launched an investigation into these letters. As they're concerned some of these letters may have been contaminated with the lethal substance known as fentanyl. The states targeted include California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Texas and Georgia. CNN's Nick Valencia has the story.

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NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Victor, Amara, this is terrifying. Investigators are treating all of these letters as if they're connected. There's more than a dozen of them sent to multiple states and they were all sent around the same time, investigators will use that fact to figure out exactly who was behind this.

In the meantime, the Department of Justice is investigating as well as the U.S. Postal Service and one of the elections offices that was targeted was right here in Fulton County. The Fulton County has been in the news a lot lately is one of the sites where the former president was indicted. And it's also drawn his ire as well as been the target of some far-right conspiracy theorists and election deniers. It was shortly after this news was made public that the Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger took to the podium to call these domestic terrorists.

BRAD RAFFENSPERGER, GEORGIA SECRETARY OF STATE: This is domestic terrorism, and it needs to be condemned by anyone that holds elected office and anyone that wants to hold elected office anywhere in America.

ROBB PITTS, CHAIRMAN, FULTON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISIONERS: There are some crazy people out there who will go to any extreme to disrupt, interrupt, fair, open, transparent elections in our country. It's my personal belief that this is just probably a forerun into what we can be prepared for in 2024.

VALENCIA: These suspicious letters were sent amid the backdrop of really a lot of harassment and tension for election officials across the country. Right here in Fulton County the Commissioner said it's his personal opinion that this could be a forerunner to what we should all be prepared for in 2024. We can only hope Victor and Amara that he's wrong.

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WALKER: Yes, you're right. Nick Valencia, thank you so much. Still ahead. The Hollywood Actors Union says its members will start voting next week on the tentative agreement that ended the month-long strike. We'll have the latest next.

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BLACKWELL: Let's talk about what we're learning from these sources that FBI agencies the cell phones of New York City Mayor Eric Adams as part of this federal investigation into campaign fundraising. We now have CNN political commentator and spectrum news political anchor Errol Louis. I think we figured out the technical element. Errol, good to see you.

So let's start here with the investigation into in large part potential illegal campaign funding and fund raising from the Turkish government, other Turkish sources. What interests do we know would the Turkish government have in the election of New York City's mayor?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, good morning, Victor. The connections are not entirely clear. But what we do know is that there's a Turkish construction company that does a lot of business with the government. And it is executives from that company, who were also looking for contracts with New York City which has a huge $100 million budget each year. They were looking for contracts and they were -- apparently, they were maybe trying to curry favor. That's the theory that's out there.

But a lot of this is just speculation. There's been no accusation. There's been no wrongdoing, frankly, charged against anyone at this point. But we do know that there are questions about it and the warrant that some reporters have seen really strongly suggest that this is what they're looking for that, you know, a construction company might want a piece of $107 billion annual city budget it and that alone is reason enough to try and curry favor with different officials including of course the mayor.

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BLACKWELL: The mayor's statement was pretty boiler-plate, clean-cut, but in the past, he has been kind of curt or terse with reporters, as last, added some. How has his -- what's been his response to this beyond the statement that Gloria brought us a moment ago?

LOUIS: Well, you know what? What was kind of odd, Victor, was, there was a whole session on Wednesday that was supposed to be specifically dedicated to this and other topics. And so, at least, half a dozen questions were asked, and of course, of about 45 minutes of a press availability, and one of those questions to the mayor at the time was, are you concerned about your phones being, you know, wiretapped by the FBI?

And that would have been a perfect opportunity to bring up some of these things. But city hall was silent on that. The mayor said nothing about it. His counsel who was there, one of his lawyers said don't draw any inferences and don't jump the gun, and that sort of a thing.

And so, then 72 hours later, all of this finally came out. So he was in front of the press corps, knowing full well that his phones and other devices had been seized, that things had really jumped up a step. The mayor, in fact, has hired a pretty high powered law firm to represent his interests.

BLACKWELL: Yes --

LOUIS: Things are really moving pretty quickly, but what we've heard mostly from City Hall is, hey, there's nothing to see here.

BLACKWELL: All right, let's talk about Congress. We are now less than a week away from a potential shutdown again because of lack of funding. Speaker Johnson has had the gavel for a couple of weeks now. What is on the line for him? And I wonder if he has enough good will to get to if necessary another continuing resolution, another 15, 30 days if Democrats are willing in the Senate to try to work out a deal.

LOUIS: Well, look, he is in the same position as his predecessor, and that's not a good thing. I mean, there is a lot of chaos going on frankly. They went home for the weekend without any kind of a decision on this. We've got members of the Republican conference who were still kind of sniping, putting in all kinds of non-budget related items to try and score political points.

There is no consensus on whether or not there should just be a clean continuing resolution just to keep the government open. You know, he's pretty much in the same position as his predecessor, and he does not have the option of trying to work with the Democrats on this, because that's what sank Speaker McCarthy.

So, he's got an unruly Republican caucus, they don't have any consensus on this, and it's not clear whether or not they can avoid this. The thing to keep in mind, Victor, is there are some members of the Republican conference who don't mind if the government shuts down, who almost want it to happen.

And you know, in that kind of a case when you only got five votes to spare, it's very hard to get all the way through it.

BLACKWELL: Yes, and what we do know is that, there is a call later this morning where the speaker will -- a meeting, rather, since he sent everyone home, I expect it will be on Zoom, where he will unveil what is in his plan. So that will be the first time today we'll see what the plan is from the speaker.

And again, about six days or so until the government runs out of money. Errol Louis, thanks so much for being with us.

LOUIS: Thank you.

WALKER: It came down to the wire, but SAG-AFTRA officially accepted a deal from major Hollywood studios. The actors strike is over tentatively after nearly four months, but everything isn't set in stone just yet. Voting to ratify the agreements starts Tuesday. CNN's Camila Bernal explains what we know so far about the deal.

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Amara, Victor, the SAG- AFTRA national board approved this tentative deal with an 86 percent vote. And the leadership here saying they were not able to get everything they wanted, but they do say they made significant gains when it comes to this contract.

They also say there were two things that they negotiated up until the very last moment. One being artificial intelligence protections, and they say that what they were able to accomplish here was consent so that performers can make an informed decision when it comes to their use in artificial intelligence. They also say they were able to get compensation for the use of artificial intelligence. And so, these two things were extremely important, not just for the leadership, but also for board members. Now, the other issue that they say they negotiated up until the very end is revenue from streaming. What they're calling a fund concept.

This is revenue and success-based bonuses on streaming. And so what happens here is that the money, the bonuses will go to the union and be divided between the performers on these very successful shows. And then there's a percentage of that money that's going to be divided among other members of the union.

[06:35:00]

But the President of the union, Fran Drescher, describing it as a new pocket of money. And that's why they say they are so just excited about what they were able to accomplish, a new form of revenue when it comes to streaming. Now, there were many other provisions that they say were successful, and that they were able to include in this contract, including things like sexual harassment and other things that members are very passionate about, like for example, hair and makeup. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE HURD, ACTRESS, SAG-AFTRA NATIONAL BOARD MEMBER: There's every single actor of color you could talk to, I'm sure at this moment will tell you that there has not been one time that they have not brought their own base, done their hair. So this is empowering our artists, it's also empowering the hair and makeup trailer because it gives them more skills.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: And now that this tentative deal has been approved by the board, members will get to see some of these details, they will begin to ask questions over the coming weeks. The voting begins on Tuesday to ratify this contract, it will go until the first week of December. But in the meantime, performers and members of the union can now go back to work after very difficult months. So many people just ready to go back to doing what they love. Amara, Victor.

WALKER: Still ahead, as calls grow louder for a ceasefire in Israel, we are going to take a much closer look at the humanitarian toll this war is taking on civilians.

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[06:40:00]

WALKER: Yes.

BLACKWELL: Aid groups around the world are continuing to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. They're calling for an end to what they describe as a hemorrhage of human lives. WALKER: This morning, Doctors Without Borders says they are unable to

contact any of their staff inside the Al-Shifa Hospital. Doctors at the hospital say they're surrounded from all four directions by Israel Defense Forces, the IDF. The hospital's generator was also hit in one attack, leaving the facility without power. Joining me now -- us now is Joseph Belliveau; he is the executive director of Doctors Without Borders-Canada.

Joseph, appreciate your time. Can you tell us the last that you heard from your staff? So you're not in contact with them, is that correct? And what was the last conversation you had?

JOSEPH BELLIVEAU, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS-CANADA: We have been able to be in patchy contact with them throughout the night and yesterday. Hospitals in northern Gaza are indeed under constant bombardment over the last 24 hours. Al-Shifa Hospital in particular, this is the main emergency hospital, it's the main surgical facility in northern Gaza, has been relentlessly hit overnight.

The maternity ward according to my colleagues has been damaged. The outpatient ward has been damaged. They can confirm that many people have been killed. I actually received a couple of messages I'd like to just briefly read, these one from last night from a medic colleague, "we might -- we might not survive until morning. We don't want to be killed here just only because we remain committed to our patients and our medical profession."

And this morning, another one from a nurse who is in the basement in Al-Shifa Hospital, "we are being killed here. Please do something. My kids are screaming in fear." So this -- I cannot confirm how many patients have been killed, I can't confirm how many medical care workers have been killed or even confirm whether my colleagues have made it through the night. But I can certainly say that these attacks on hospital facilities are attacks on humanity.

BLACKWELL: Thank you for sharing those messages. And we hear about the attacks, we hear about the danger. As there is this lack of resources, the reserves are spent. We reported earlier that there are some medical groups that say that if they don't get fuel, if they don't get resources, they may just have to stop working.

WALKER: Yes --

BLACKWELL: What can you tell us about the resources to care for those injured at Al-Shifa?

BELLIVEAU: I've been, you know, stretched completely. I can confirm as well that throughout the night, the electricity went off in Al-Shifa Hospital, MSF, Doctors Without Borders have been supporting other hospital facilities in northern Gaza, some of which have had to close due to the combination of the bombing and the lack of fuel.

If you don't have electricity, you can't electrify incubators for newborn babies, ventilators, dialysis machines, treatments for cancer. Patients die without electricity. WALKER: What --

BELLIVEAU: Then on top of that, severe shortages of the most basic supplies, medical supplies necessary to treat wounds. I'm talking about gauze, painkillers, anesthetics. My surgeon colleague reported from Al-Shifa Hospital that yesterday, he did 25 surgical interventions, but they're doing these interventions without painkillers for post-operative care, without anesthetics, without the proper instruments.

In many cases, they're doing these surgeries just in the hallways because the hospitals are so inundated with injured people. There are still hundreds of injured people who are coming into these facilities every day. Some of the rooms are collapsing, being hit by the bombs. And there are still thousands of people in these facilities.

WALKER: I'm sure you and your staff at Doctors Without Borders are scrambling to get help obviously, that seems like a very difficult, if not impossible task. What are you and your staff doing in terms of trying to -- I don't know, save your staff members. I mean, are you in touch with the IDF? Have you reached out to them?

[06:45:00]

BELLIVEAU: We are certainly as much as we can be in touch with all of the parties to the conflict, and constantly requesting for respect for medical facilities, for respect for the basic principles of international humanitarian law, which call for a distinction between combatants and non-combatants and measures to protect non-combatants. That was the pattern that we've seen so consistently since October 7 is a complete disregard for those basic fundamental rules.

So many civilians have been killed and injured. We lost a colleague on Monday, this past Monday, he was in his home with his family. A bomb hit that -- hit his home and he was killed with his family. So we've seen so egregiously the violations of international humanitarian law, including now that direct bombardment of medical facilities which is explicitly prohibited in IHL, that we, as Doctors Without Borders are taking a very unusual step for us to step out and call for a total ceasefire.

We would normally say, please, respect medical space. Please respect humanity within the context of war. In this case, that has -- that has completely been completely obliterated. And doctors cannot stop bombs. So we are stepping out now and calling on the authorities and anybody with influence to have a total ceasefire.

WALKER: And, of course, regarding the bombardment around Al-Shifa, there are conflicting claims, Israel, you know, saying that it was a misfired rocket by Hamas or a terrorist organization. And Hamas, obviously, pointing the finger at the IDF. We're going to have to leave it there, and our condolences to you and we're very sorry for your losses. Joseph Belliveau, thank you very much.

BELLIVEAU: Thank you for having me. WALKER: So, as we honor our veterans this weekend, we want to

spotlight Stacey Buckner, who is serving homeless veterans in need while facing her own challenges following a brain injury. With over 30,000 veterans experiencing homelessness in the United States, it's her mission to give back to those who have given us their service.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STACEY BUCKNER, CNN HERO WHO ASSISTS HOMELESS VETERANS: It takes boots on the ground to get back there, find them and meet their needs. We provide clothing, food, there is a full kitchen in the back. We also do laundry. Your pants are almost done spinning, baby. It's just filling a basic human need.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like this establishment, this setup you got.

BUCKNER: This is my brick and mortar. Even though I'm not a veteran, I do have mental health issues that come with having a traumatic brain injury, so I can relate. You've been burning the road open that walker, I know that much.

Sometimes I really do surprise people with who I am. I mean, look at me, I look really rough around the edges, right? Hey, what's up, brother? And as for you, what else you need? I'm all tatted up and I may throw out a cuss word every now and then, but I'm just Stacey. It's important to show veterans that there are organizations out there that want to really provide support to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Go to cnnheroes.com right now to vote for her for a CNN Hero of the year or any of your favorite top-ten heroes. We will be right back.

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WALKER: All right, here is something you can thank inflation for. The IRS just announced new income tax brackets for 2024 and a higher standard deduction.

BLACKWELL: So, this means that your income could be taxed at a lower rate next year, at least, some of it. Here is CNN's Matt Egan.

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Hey, Victor and Amara, this is a bit of good news from an unlikely place, the IRS. Now, these adjustments are something the IRS does every year, and like most things that the IRS does, it's normally pretty boring, right? The adjustments are typically tiny. But because inflation has been so high, the adjustment are much more significant now.

So here's what's happening, the IRS is bumping up the income thresholds for tax rates for 2024. The rates themselves, they're staying the same. What's changing is the income level before you hit that next tax rate. Let me give you an example, 2023 for single filers, income above $95,000 is being taxed at 24 percent. But in 2024, you won't hit that 24 percent tax rate until you're above $100,500. That's a significant difference.

Now, these changes, they're not designed to ease anyone's tax burden per se. Their goal is to prevent what's known as bracket creep, where taxpayers get pushed into higher and higher brackets, even though their buying power is staying the same. Now, the IRS is also bumping up deductions and tax credits. For example, the standard deduction, which is what most people claim, that's going up by 5 percent.

The single filers can claim $13,850 on their 2023 taxes. But for 2024, that's going up to $14,600. That's an extra 750 bucks. For married couples filing jointly, the standard deduction is also going higher, it's going up by$1,500. Now, also good news for parents trying to raise kids in this high inflation environment, the earned income tax credit, which is for low and moderate income families that's going higher too.

That write-off in 2024, it's maxing out at $7,830, that's up by $400 from 2023. Put all this together, these changes, they can be significant for families.

[06:55:00]

But let's hope that this time next year, the IRS can go back to making those small boring changes, because hopefully by that point, inflation will be back to normal. Victor and Amara?

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Matt. Can anti-Semitism be stopped? Dana Bash investigates why the Jewish community faces some of the highest threats in America on "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper. Here's a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Since the attack on Israel October 7th, how has your role become more vital?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In the wake of the attack, we began to see first a surge and then a spike, and then an explosion, and now a tsunami of anti-Semitism worldwide. In Paris, in London, in Germany --

(CROWD CHANTING)

In Australia, it was gas the Jews. Get rid of the Jews, let's have a Jew free zone. It's not about being pro-Hamas or anti-Israel. It's about anti-Semitism.

BASH: Lipstak (ph) was appointed ambassador because she is one of the world's foremost academic experts on anti-Semitism.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know how when a yellow light is flashing, anti-Semitism is like that amber light. And what it's signaling is that anti-Semitism is coming and it's a threat to democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWELL: "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper airs tomorrow night

at 9:00 here on CNN.

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