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CNN This Morning

Powerful Storm Threatens Florida, East Coast; Protests In Tel Aviv After IDF Misidentifies And Kills Three Israeli Hostages; Trump And The Mystery Of The Missing Russian Intel; Giuliani Ordered To Pay Nearly $150 Million To G.A. Election Workers; Tracking Russian Intelligence That Went Missing Under Trump; Federal Reserve Board Strategy Works To Cool Inflation; Israel Defense Forces: Accidental Killing Of Israeli Hostages Was "Against Our Rules Of Engagement"; Several Men Exonerated Of High Profile Crimes, Set Free; Ja Morant On Gun Suspension: "Tough" But "Grateful". Aired 7-8a ET

Aired December 16, 2023 - 07:00   ET

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

[06:59:55]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): The possibility of flooding and severe winds has prompted Florida's governor to activate the National Guard. Tens of thousands of homes and businesses could lose power. Let's start now with meteorologist Allison Chinchar and what to expect. Allison?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's right. We're keeping an eye because it's all about this system that's really starting to develop in the Gulf of Mexico. Now, right now, we don't really have too much out there. Most of the moisture is still well over the warm waters, but that's going to change as we head into the afternoon.

All of that rain is going to begin to spread across the state of Florida and it's really going to be pretty much a deluge most of the day today. So, if you were kind of hoping for a few breaks, it's going to be very early this morning and that's about it. Because by the time we get to this evening, that low pressure system starts to slide up the East Coast.

The main focus for tomorrow really being Georgia and into the Carolinas. Then, from there, that low pressure system will continue up the eastern seaboard. So, by late Sunday, the Delmarva region and Mid- Atlantic, that's where the focus is going to be. By Monday morning, if you have any travel plans or maybe you still have to go to work, it is going to be a very soggy commute first thing Monday for much of the Northeast.

Very heavy rain. Flooding is going to be the top concern with this storm. You're talking widespread three to five inches, but also coastal flooding, coastal erosion are going to be big concerns up and down the East Coast. That heavy rain continues. So, again, even for areas of the Northeast, you're still also looking at that three to five-inch range of rainfall totals. Flooding concerns, three different days, three different regions.

Today, the main focus is going to be across Florida. By tomorrow, you're talking more of the Carolina coast into the Mid-Atlantic. And then, by Monday, the main concern is really going to be areas of the Northeast. Also, talking winds, you're looking at a lot of these winds up around that 30 to even 60 mile per hour range. That could lead to trees and power lines coming down as well.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Allison. Allison Chinchar, thank you very much. Let's turn now to the Israel-Hamas war and the Israeli defense forces have launched an investigation after Israeli troops mistakenly shot and killed three Israeli hostages in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Benjamin Netanyahu, called the incident an unbearable tragedy, adding that returning hostages is a "sacred mission."

BLACKWELL: And for several hours today, there's a chance for civilians to get access to food and water. The IDF says it will conduct a tactical pause for humanitarian purposes in a neighborhood in Rafah. That pause comes as Israel announced Friday that it will allow aid for Gaza to cross directly into Gaza from its territory for the first time since this war started.

WALKER: And the U.S. is signaling that the intense fighting so far in the Israel-Hamas war will transition to a new phase. Let's get right to CNN's Camilla DeChalus at the White House. Camilla, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan made these comments while in Tel Aviv, saying that the next stages of this war will involve more precise ways of targeting Hamas leadership. What more can you tell us about his comments?

CAMILLA DECHALUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, he made these comments and the hope is that while Israel shifts to a new phase and conducts more precise targeting, then this will mitigate the number of innocent civilian lives that are being lost in Gaza while Israel carries out its military operations. Because the White House has said for quite some time now that it wants Israel to take more steps in place to avoid civilian casualties in the region of Gaza.

But what has been really quite noticeable is the shift in tone the White House has taken when talking about Israel, and it's becoming more critical. Just a few days ago, Joe Biden said at a private event that the Israeli Prime Minister was losing support, international support, on its campaign against Hamas. Amara, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Camilla DeChalus, for us here at the White House. Thanks so much. Max Boot is a Senior Fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations and a Columnist for the Washington Post. Max, good morning to you. Let's start here with Jake Sullivan's words. And he says that this is not about the U.S. telling Israel that they must do X or they must do Y. My question for you is how much influence without the explicit instruction is the U.S. having on? Israel's execution of this war?

MAX BOOT, COLUMNIST, WASHINGTON POST: It's really hard to tell the answer to that, Victor, because it's hard to know how much of what Israel is doing is in response to, to U.S. criticism as opposed to what the IDF wants to do anyway. I mean, I think there has been some indication that certainly the humanitarian pauses may be becoming a little bit more precise in trying to avoid civilian casualties.

Maybe Israel is taking on board some criticism. But just this week, we saw more of an open rupture between Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Biden over the issue of who will govern in Gaza after Hamas with President Biden making clear that he expects that the Palestinian Authority will be in charge.

And then, Prime Minister Netanyahu struck back and said no, that Gaza is not going to become a Hamas stand or a Fatah stand after the ruling party in the Palestinian Authority. And so, you know, I think there is certainly indications that there will be, you know, more clashes in the future because those different visions of how Gaza will be governed are irreconcilable.

[07:05:21]

BLACKWELL: Looking ahead, though, on the future, and I plan to come to this at the end, but you mentioned it here. How much or how relevant, I guess the better question is, is Netanyahu's vision of the longer- term future for Gaza, considering how low he is in polls and popularity and his government there in Israel and how tenuous his leadership is as this war moves into another phase?

BOOT: Well, I think that's exactly why he's enunciating the vision of Gaza that he is. That is because his political life is in peril right now. He's plummeted in popularity, and he feels that the only way he can stay in office is to pander to his right-wing coalition partners. And those coalition partners are completely opposed to any Palestinian state.

In fact, they want to annex the West Bank and to, you know, further destroy Palestinian statehood. And so, that's why I think he's coming out and saying, no, there's not going to be the Palestinian Authority government in Gaza, even though I don't think there's any real good alternative in the long run. But I think, you know, the good news from Israel is that more moderate centrist parties, including, including Benny Gantz, who is one of Netanyahu's partners in the war cabinet.

They are picking up support at the same time that Bibi is losing support. And so, I think there is some hope that at some point when you next have an election in Israel that a more modern government will come to power will realize that it has to provide a more positive outlet for Palestinian aspirations, so that Palestinians can aspire to their own state instead of, you know, having Hamas continue to launch these horrific attacks on Israel.

BLACKWELL: The accidental killing of these three Israeli hostages by IDF forces, how much does that potentially escalate the degree of urgency, change strategy for Israel as we saw these protests in the street in Tel Aviv?

BOOT: It's obviously a terrible, terrible tragedy. I don't know that it's going to necessarily change the strategy. I mean, I think the IDF has a very difficult task that they've been trying to undertake, which is on the one hand, conduct combat operations that are destroying Hamas, which is the mission that they've been given. And second, they have to try to limit Palestinian civilian casualties,

which is very difficult because Hamas uses civilians as human shields. And, of course, third, they have to try to liberate all the hostages that Hamas continues to hold. Now, of course, there was some good news, you know, a few weeks ago on the hostage front when more than 100 hostages were released during the course of a one-week pause in the fighting, but there just has not been a lot of success for Israel in terms of trying to liberate hostages with its own forces, with commando raids or what have you.

And of course, every time that happens, every time you try to undertake a military operation to free the hostages, there's always the risk of what just happened, which is losing hostages in a friendly fire incident which is you know terrible but unfortunately it is the kind of thing that too often happens in combat.

BLACKWELL: Well, my question really wasn't militarily it was more diplomatically in the negotiations through Qatar with Hamas. As our Alex Marquardt reported is that this is a priority for the Israeli government that those the citizens, the families of these hostages want it to be the priority?

BOOT: Well, that's right. And I think Israel, the Israeli government, is balancing different priorities. I mean, I think they do have a priority of trying to destroy Hamas as well as trying to free the hostages. And obviously, those two are often in tension. I would hope that this could lead to a renewal of negotiations in Qatar, which broke down after about a week last time, and still leaving a number of hostages in Hamas's hands, not all of whom, unfortunately, are still alive. So, I would hope that there could be a further hostage exchange in return for a pause in the fighting. But it's very hard to know whether those negotiations will be successful in the future or not.

BLACKWELL: Max Boot, thank you.

WALKER: Still ahead, Trump's former attorney, Rudy Giuliani, has been ordered to pay nearly 150 million-dollar in damages to former election workers for defamation. Will they ever see that money?

[07:10:05]

Plus, CNN learns about a key binder of Russian intelligence that vanished in the final days of the Trump administration.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Rudy Giuliani, the man once known as America's mayor, must pay nearly $150 million to two Georgia election workers.

WALKER: After more than 10 hours of deliberations, a Washington jury ordered Giuliani to pay more than $148 million in damages for defaming the two women following Donald Trump's 2020 presidential defeat. CNN's Katelyn Polantz has more.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: $148 million -- that's the amount a federal jury in this courthouse this Friday decided Rudy Giuliani should have to pay. So, the former mayor of New York, the former lawyer to Donald Trump in the 2020 election, he was on trial because he defamed two women repeatedly after the 2020 election.

[07:15:12]

Those women are Shea Moss and Ruby Freeman, a mother and daughter. They were absentee ballot counters in the state of Georgia after the election, counting those ballots that were mailed in for the vote. And Giuliani and others accused them of switching votes or stealing votes.

Those were absolute lies that has been determined by this court. And so, the trial this entire week in Washington, D.C., was about how much in damages Rudy Giuliani should be facing because of the repeated lies that he made. The jury's ultimate conclusion was a very astounding number in a lot of ways.

That is quite a significant number, $148 million for any defamation case against an individual. He's not a company. And it is a sizable amount for the former mayor of New York. It's not about the money, though. Here is what Freeman and Moss had to say after court, after that verdict was read.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAYE MOSS, FORMER GEORGIA ELECTION WORKER: The flame that Giuliani lit with those lies and passed to so many others to keep that flame blazing changed every aspect of our lives. Our homes, our family, our work, our sense of safety, our mental health.

RUBY FREEMAN, FORMER GEORGIA ELECTION WORKER: I want people to understand this. Money will never solve all of my problems. I can never move back into the house that I called home. I will always have to be careful about where I go and who I choose to share my name with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POLANTZ: Within that $148 million damages finding by the jury, there was $75 million of it that the jury said was specifically owed to these women to punish Giuliani and deter him and others from continuing to do what he is doing. But Giuliani, after court, he essentially said he is ready to keep fighting, he wants to appeal. Here's what he had to say outside the courthouse.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER ATTORNEY TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Certainly, we'll appeal. The absurdity of the number merely underscores the absurdity of the entire proceeding.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you have any regrets about some of the comments that the women received?

GIULIANI: Well of course, the comments they received, I had nothing to do with. Those comments are abominable, they're deplorable. No defense to it, but I receive comments like that every day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POLANTZ: It doesn't appear he has a lot of legal options to really escape a judgment like this. He will be able to appeal, but he may have to start putting up money quite quickly and their lawyers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss's lawyers are going to try and claim money from Giuliani very fast. They're going to try and collect but Giuliani has said repeatedly that he is broke, he has nothing to pay, he's trying to sell an apartment he owns in New York City for $6.1 million.

It hasn't been sold since it's been listed for a couple months and he has no other money to be paying lawyers or do other things. So, there is still a question of exactly how much money these two women will be seeing out of Rudy Giuliani, someone who was quite powerful after the 2020 election and for many years in this country, but they say that it never was about just money alone and what they could be rewarded.

It was about sending a message that people with a platform like his should know better and should not do these sorts of things to harass workers of elections and people who would be participating in elections. Katelyn Polantz, CNN, Washington.

BLACKWELL: A first on CNN, exclusive reporting about highly classified intelligence that was last seen at the end of the Trump administration. The information relates to Russian election interference.

WALKER: That information was deemed so sensitive it could only be accessed at the CIA and the people working with the intel had to keep their notes locked in a safe at CIA headquarters. Yet, in the final weeks of the Trump administration, a binder of this intel was brought to the White House at the request of the president as part of an effort to declassify the documents.

BLACKWELL: And in the final chaotic hours of Trump's presidency, that binder kind of disappeared. No one knows where it is. CNN's Katie Bo Lillis helped break the story down, and she has more for us.

KATIE BO LILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so this binder that was brought to the White House contained raw intelligence that the U.S. and NATO allies collected on Russia's efforts to meddle in the 2016 election, including sources and methods, some of the most sensitive information in the intelligence world.

What we're talking about here is the underlying intelligence that formed the basis of the U.S. government's assessment that Vladimir Putin sought to help Trump win the 2016 election. The disappearance of this binder was so alarming to intelligence officials that they briefed Senate Intelligence Committee leadership about the situation last year and were told by one U.S. official familiar with the matter that this was not among the classified items found in last year's search of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.

So, more than two years later it appears this binder is still missing. But my colleagues and I closely followed the trail of this intelligence from the CIA to the White House. Trump had spent years trying to declassify material that he said would prove his claims that the Russia investigation was a hoax.

[07:20:30]

And this intelligence was part of a massive collection of documents that he ordered brought to the White House. There was a sort of frantic scramble in the final days of the administration to redact them so they could be declassified and released publicly. Now, on his last full day as president, Trump did issue a declassification order for some of the materials, and the FBI has published some of it on its Web site.

But after that, things get a little murky. We don't know what happened to the binder that went missing. There is one theory that has emerged from testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson, the former top aide to former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. She told the January 6th committee that she was "almost positive" it went home with Mr. Meadows.

She said it had been kept in a safe in Meadows' office when it was not being worked on. And she also wrote about this in her new book, claiming that on January 19th, the final night of the Trump presidency, that she saw Meadows leave the White House with an unredacted binder "tucked under his arm."

Now, Mark Meadows' attorney strongly denies this. He said in a statement, "Mr. Meadows was keenly aware of and adhered to requirements for the proper handling of classified material. Any such material that he handled or was in his possession has been treated accordingly. And any suggestion that he is responsible for any missing binder or other classified information is flat wrong." So, at this point, the mystery of this missing binder remains just that, a mystery. Katie Bo Lillis, CNN, Washington.

BLACKWELL: Steve Hall joins us now. He's a CNN National Security Analyst and the former CIA Chief of Russia Operations. Steve, thanks for being with us. I wonder, first off, you know, there is this classified documents case surrounding the former president. If this were in his possession, do you think we would know it by now, considering the searches that have happened at his property?

STEVE HALL, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: You know, Victor, it all depends. I mean, this reporting, I mean, this is obviously egregious, what this reporting is describing. And one of the open questions, as you've alluded to, is where is this stuff?

Apparently, it's still, it's unknown as to where it is. And there is the theory that perhaps Mark Meadows had it or has it in the safe at his house. That might be one reason that we can't explain exactly or know exactly where it is. Whether or not there's any other places in Mar-a-Lago that haven't been checked yet, is there a closet down the hall? Or we might find this and other information.

So, at this point, we just don't know. But the idea that we don't know where this incredibly sensitive information is, is chilling, you know, for former intelligence officers like me, and certainly has a significant impact on national security at a number of different levels. WALKER: I mean, what do you make of this theory that potentially Mark Meadows, a former Chief of Staff, may have taken it home? Or I mean, could it be far-fetched to even wonder if Putin may have his hands on it.

HALL: You know, again, we just at this point, it's because we don't know where the information is, it's kind of speculative. But again, the idea that we don't know precisely where it is, which is the idea when you're collecting extremely sensitive information, especially if it's raw intelligence, which does point to a lot of the sources and the methodology used to collect this information.

I mean, the idea that we simply don't know where it is, is not the way obviously things should work. This type of sensitive information can be very damaging. So, you know, Mark Meadows, a hallway of Mar-a-Lago, we just don't know and that's the worst part of it.

BLACKWELL: Beyond those sources and methods, what else qualifies or constitutes raw intelligence?

HALL: Yes, the raw intelligence, yes, we could get into the weeds in this a little bit because there's different people mean different things by raw intelligence. But I think the best way to understand it for viewers is that raw intelligence, as opposed to finished intelligence, the raw stuff can more quickly and easily identify either the human being that provided that information.

I mean, there's some information that only a couple of people know. And so, if you're reporting that information, if the bad guys, in this case the Russians, get it, they're able to figure out who it was, or the methodologies that could be used, how, for example, collection, technical collection might be going on. That stuff is more present, or there's more hints in the raw intelligence than the finished product.

WALKER: So, the fact that these documents had raw intelligence in them, and it's unclear how much was redacted, but should declassification even have been a consideration?

HALL: Again, in my view, absolutely not. I mean, the idea that this level of sensitive information was collected and then the goal of it was to declassify it for political reasons, so that it could then be disseminated again for political reasons after declassification.

I mean, that's not a good reason to declassify this level of sensitive information. There are certain circumstances where the declassification of intelligence can be extremely useful to the policymaker, but it's not to be used for personal political gain, which appears to be the point of this reporting.

BLACKWELL: Yes, the existence of a process would seem to undermine the president's claim in the past that he could simply blink or think about declassifying documents that were at his house. There shows that he knew there was a process and ordered them to the White House to start that process. Steve Hall, thanks so much.

[07:25:38] Coming up, what we're finally seeing in the autopsy report for the

late "Friends" star Matthew Perry and what the medical examiner says was in his system when he died.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: The Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Office released their autopsy report for "Friends" actor, Matthew Perry. It shows his blood tested positive for ketamine. He was reported to receive a ketamine infusion therapy for both depression and anxiety.

[07:29:58]

But the autopsy states that Perry's last reported treatment was several days before his death, and should have been out of his system by the time he died. Perry's assistant found him -- 54 years old unconscious in his pool on October 28.

The mother of a first-grade boy who shot his teacher in Virginia was sentenced on state charges two years in prison. Deja Taylor pleaded guilty to felony child neglect in August. He's already serving 20 months on federal charges.

Her son, who is now seven, shot his teacher, Abigail Zwerner, earlier this year, which she says left her with permanent injuries. Zwerner filed a $40 million lawsuit against the school district. She says administrators ignored warning signs from the child.

A new federal data shows that student loan repayments got back to a rocky start after pandemic-era pause lifted this fall. About 60 percent of borrowers made that first payment of October down from about 70 percent in 2019.

And for those who did not pay, the Department of Education is promising a bit of relief. They're offering a year-long on ramp period to shield people from mandatory collections or going into default or delinquency.

WALKER: It might not feel like it yet, but the latest economic data shows inflation is cooling. Interest rate hikes, the Federal Reserve instituted worked to control prices. The cost of goods and services dropped just over three percent of the last year. Food and energy prices were up four percent, the lowest increase in September 2021.

Now, President Biden's top economic adviser said it's looking less likely that the country will drop into a recession, that Federal Reserve is planning for the future and said this week, it will hold rates steady, and it could cut rates as many as three times next year.

Joining me now to talk about the economy is CNN commentator, Catherine Rampell.

Catherine, good to see you. Good morning.

Like, this is all great news. Right? But the polls don't really reflect a lot of enthusiasm for the trajectory of the economy. A recent CNN poll that was taken in November found that a majority, I think it was 71 percent of Americans, saying that the economic conditions in this country are poor, it's just going to take time for Americans to feel the cost of goods and gas prices and the rates, obviously, going down as well.

CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: It really has been a puzzle on paper, the economy looks great. Right? You have very low unemployment. In fact, unemployment below four percent for two years. You have the economy, so far, escaping those recession forecasts, as you point out, inflation has also come down quite a bit, and yet, consumers are really grumpy. I think that it's partly the fact that they've spent down a lot of their savings, even if they've gotten raises, and recently anyway, raises have outpaced inflation. They are still frustrated by the fact that prices have grown as much as they have.

And I think a lot of consumers are wrongly expecting overall prices to go down, which they are unlikely to do. And in fact, if they did would signal some really big problems in the U.S. economy.

I think it's just going to take a little bit of time until people get used to the price growth we've seen so far. And we'll see again, continued growth but much slower. And hopefully we'll keep adding jobs and people will keep getting wage increases, and we'll get used to it. Yes.

WALKER: I think a lot of people were happy to hear that the Federal Reserve could, you know, cut rates several times next year. So, for those who've been holding off on buying a home because of these really high interest rates, will they be in better luck next year?

RAMPELL: Right now, it's looking that way. I mean, no one has a crystal ball. Obviously, there could be some major economic shock of some kind that throws the Fed and the economy off track. But the Fed has indicated that they will cut rates as soon as -- or they're indicating about three times next year, markets are assuming that those cuts could come as soon as around March, let's say, if you just look at where markets are pricing treasury instruments right now.

And you're already seeing, in fact, banks anticipating those rate cuts and bringing mortgage rates down a teeny tiny bit. Right? They're now closer to seven percent, whereas they had been around eight percent.

So, that could be very good news for people who are trying to finance any major purchase, whether it's a home, a car loan, or even worried about their credit card debt.

Again, you know, don't assume anything will definitely happen. But yes, that would be helpful for a lot of consumers.

WALKER: All right. Well, we'll wrap it up on this higher note.

Catherine Rampell, great to see you. Thanks.

BLACKWELL: Still to come, stunning new details just coming in about the hostages in Gaza, who were accidentally shot and killed by the IDF.

[07:34:52]

We'll explain what those hostages were doing before they were fired.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: "BREAKING NEWS" just in to CNN. The Israeli Defense Forces, say the Israeli hostages who were mistakenly killed were waving a white flag when they were first spotted by soldiers.

BLACKWELL: Let's bring in now, Melissa Bell and CNN military analyst Colonel Cedric Leighton.

Melissa, let's start with you with reporting. What we know?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The very latest, and this is according to an IDF official. We're hearing, Victor, that these three hostages had been seen coming out of a building just dozens of meters from where IDF soldiers were standing. They were shirtless, carrying white flags, and yet, the shooting began.

[07:40:05]

One soldier felt threatened opened fire, two of them are believed to have died immediately. The third was wounded, headed back inside, despite a shout in Hebrew, and the commander giving the order of ceasefire, another burst of fire happened. It's unclear which killed the man, all three now dead, and those deaths are subject of an investigation by the IDF.

But some very damning details to emerge there from that official, who specified that this was clearly in violation of the idea of rules of engagement. There was also, we understand, a building nearby with SOS run on it unclear for now, whether this was linked to the three hostages, it may be explained the officials that hid their captors had simply abandoned them and they were trying to get the attention of IDF forces, but a terrible new details involved in that tragedy, Victor Amara.

WALKER: And Colonel Leighton, again, you heard Melissa Bell say there that the IDF spokesperson said that this was a violation of the Army's rule of engagement. But, just give us -- help us understand the context, because obviously, this is a very difficult situation. And that spokesperson also said that this was an area where there was intense combat, and that terrorists were moving around in civilian attire.

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, that's right. Amara. And so, one of the things that you have to understand when something like this happens is this is a wild scene. There are a lot of things going on at once adrenaline is pumping and all of these soldiers, they are going through various degrees of stress.

And when they see something like this, this is a very unusual event, they're used to certain things happening. They used to everybody around them, besides their comrades being hostile. And when they see somebody coming toward them, their immediate suspicion is that they are hostile as well.

You know, that's kind of a natural human reaction in a situation like this. And what is supposed to happen is they are supposed to have had the training to recognize these kinds of issues, to recognize when hostages are coming forward especially in a situation like this.

So, one of the things that the IDF will most likely do is review the kind of training procedures that they have for close combat situations like this, especially when there are hostages involved.

It sounds like the unit involved was not a special operations unit. If that turns out to be the case, then, you know, that does show there is a you know some need for training at this level of the IDF. If it is a special operations unit then it calls into question a whole series of other things that would need to be looked at.

But this is one of the most serious situations, Amara, and it is a, you know, a key indicator that there is an absolute need for soldiers to kind of pull back when situations like that occur, especially, when there is a white flag involved. That's the key indicator here.

WALKER: Such a tragic situation. Melissa Bell, Col. Cedric Leighton, thank you to you both.

Well to a little like cousins who spent most of their lives locked up for crimes they did not commit, walked free this week. James Soto and David Ayala, now both in their 60s spent 42 years behind bars. The longest wrongful conviction sentence in Illinois state history.

BLACKWELL: And they were not the only man set free after a series of high-profile exonerations this week.

CNN's Josh Campbell takes a look at the other cases.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL SOLORIO, EXONERATED AFTER WRONGFULLY CONVICTED OF A MURDER: A few weeks ago, I celebrated Thanksgiving with my family for the first time in 25 years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Freeman.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST (voice over): After 2-1/2 decades behind bars, Miguel Solorio is finally home. One of four men exonerated across the country this week in prison for murders that prosecutors now say they did not commit

SOLORIO: I was wrongfully convicted of a murder had no knowledge of. I was only 19 years old.

CAMPBELL (voice over): Solorio was arrested after a 1998 drive-by shooting that killed an elderly woman near Los Angeles. SARAH PACE, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INNOCENCE PROJECT: A witness mentioned Miguel's name, and then, law enforcement officers focused solely on him, putting their own judgment about guilt or innocence, above the facts.

SOLORIO: Thank you so much.

CAMPBELL (voice over): The Northern California Innocence Project appealed to LA District Attorney George Gascon to reinvestigate the case.

Prosecutors concluding that Solorio was misidentified in a police photo lineup. Solorio's wife spoke about the travesty that has plagued her family for a quarter of a century.

SILVIA SOLORIO, WIFE OF MIGUEL SOLORIO: To see and embrace the moment, to see my husband finally free after so many years, brings me the greatest joy and happiness.

CAMPBELL (voice over): Also exonerated in L.A. Wednesday, Giovanni Hernandez, arrested for murder in 2006, when he was just 14 years old.

GIOVANNI HERNANDEZ, EXONERATED AFTER WRONGFULLY CONVICTED OF A MURDER: I was innocent of this crime.

GEORGE GASCON, DISTRICT ATTORNEY, LOS ANGELES COUNTY: A new analysis of Mr. Hernandez's cell phone records by the FBI shows that his phone was not at or near the location of the shooting.

[07:45:05]

HERNANDEZ: The system that put me in there is definitely needs to change.

CHRISTOPHER HAWTHORNE, DIRECTOR, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: People expected him to die in prison. We cannot go back to those days, when people who say they care about children are putting children in prison.

CAMPBELL (voice over): in Illinois, Brian Beals was a college football player in 1988. He was convicted for murdering a 6-year-old, spending 35 years in prison before walking free this week.

MARVIN HAYNES, EXONERATED AFTER WRONGFULLY CONVICTED OF A MURDER t's been a struggle, but --

CAMPBELL (voice over): Marvin Haynes went to prison before he even graduated high school, just 17 years old when he was found guilty of murder. On Monday, two decades later, he walked out of prison in Minnesota a free man.

HAYNES: All I want to do is move forward and just get my life back. That's it.

CAMPBELL (voice over): One common theme in all four exonerations announced this week, police relying on statements from bystanders. Later shown to be faulty, and contrary to other facts in the case. PACE: Miguel's wrongful conviction and wrongful imprisonment, were the result of law enforcement's tunnel vision.

GASCON: We have known that eyewitness identification has been a problem for at least 20 years.

CAMPBELL (voice over): With their innocence now declared, those wrongfully in prisoned say they will continue to speak out.

SOLORIO: I let my story be a blessing to everyone. Life is precious, don't take it for granted. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMPBELL (on camera): Now, it's important to note that these wrongful convictions didn't come to light because of law enforcement, rather, because of the work of public defenders and volunteers, and nonprofit groups like the Innocence Project, which works to ensure that people who are in custody are not being held unjustly.

At the work of law enforcement, obviously very critical. But these cases show that law enforcement officers are not infallible, which is why it's so important to have outside groups, essentially checking the work of the police to ensure that people aren't serving time for crimes they didn't commit.

Josh Campbell, CNN, Los Angeles.

WALKER: All right. Josh Campbell, thank you.

"FIRST OF ALL" is coming up at the top of the hour, Victor. Victor, what are you talking about?

BLACKWELL: We got a packed show. We're talking, first, immigration.

Now, the White House and Senate Republicans are negotiating this weekend to try to get some agreement on what they can get through in this package, $110 billion. That includes Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan aid.

We've got a democrat who says that she has a hell no on what the White House is considering. We'll talk with her about why she says that this is exchanging Ukrainian lives for asylum seekers' lives.

Also, this story out of Mississippi. A 10-year-old boy now has a probation officer for doing sometimes what little boys do. we'll tell you what that is.

One officer has been fired. Others had been disciplined and his family is filing a federal lawsuit.

Also, this teacher out of Maryland, who added to her e-mail signature, the phrase, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." And that many Jews and non-Jews who believe that's anti-Semitic calls for the erasure of Israel, she has been kept out of the classroom since.

We'll tell you why she says that she should be back in the classroom. It doesn't mean what the people believe it does. She is also filing an EEOC complaint. We're getting into all of that and talking to the principals of all these stories, coming up at the top of the hour. WALKER: Wow. Looking forward to all of that, Victor. Thank you.

And the kid takes on the king. How the NBA's next great player did in this first game against LeBron James.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:52:48]

WALKER: It was a special night in the NBA. LeBron James took the court against basketball's next generational talent for the first time. Andy Scholes joining me now.

Andy, fans have had this matchup circled on their calendar for months.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes. Amara. You know, always cool when two stars from different generations square off in the same game. And you know LeBron James, he's been playing in the NBA longer than Victor Wembanyama has been alive.

This is LeBron's 21st season, Wemby just 19 years old. The two squaring off for the very first-time last night. And Wemby, you know, 7'4". He was guarding LeBron at one point in the corner, but LeBron, somehow, skies a three over him. Incredible shot there.

LeBron had 23 points 14 assists. And Wemby' Spurs are writing a franchise record 18 game losing streak coming into this one. But he would help in that scrape to driving slam there.

Wemby, 13 points, 15 rebounds. Lakers without three starters including Anthony Davis, and they could not overcome that.

Spurs have win for the first time since November 2nd. 129-115. And here was Wemby afterwards, but facing LeBron.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR WEMBANYAMA, SAN ANTONIO SPURS CENTER: Just starstruck.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

WEMBANYAMA: (INAUDIBLE) to that word.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It means like, (INAUDIBLE) like that I seeing a star for me, but like people are when they see you.

WEMBANYAMA: I mean, I would have thought I would feel some type of way but, honestly, on the court, I was just trying to win, trying to -- trying to defend and make the right place. So, no. No, I do have no feelings in the court rather.

SCHOLES (voice over): All right, Memphis Grizzlies star, Ja Morant, meanwhile, meeting with the media yesterday. This is the first time Ja has spoken publicly since being suspended 25 games for flashing a gun on social media twice in a three-month span.

Ja says the ban has been tough, but he is grateful for the support he received.

JA MORANT, MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES GUARD: It's been tough. No, a lot of learning. A lot of teaching. It's been, you know, a process. You know, obviously I want to say, you know, I regret it. But I'm, you know, not happy that it happened.

But I'm also you know, grateful that, you know, I had this opportunity to like you said, reflect, and do thanks that, you know, I felt like was not only needed for me, but you know, for my family, you know as well for us, you know, realize pretty much, you know, what's all at stake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:55:11]

SCHOLES (on camera): Ja is eligible to play for the first time this season, Tuesday, against the Pelicans.

And finally, Tiger Woods is going to be teeing it up this weekend once again with his son Charlie, in the PNC Championship in Florida. The two were out there for the pro-am yesterday. Charlie is now 14 years old, quite the golfer himself. And Tiger says he always loves this weekend with his son.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIGER WOODS, PROFESSIONAL GOLFER, 15-TIME MAJOR WINNER: It's been fun. It's been fun for both of us. We have fed off of our competitive nature, and we feel, you know, really push each other to become better and it's just a fun atmosphere. We keep it light, competitive, and enjoyable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yes. And Amara, it is fun seeing how competitive they are.

My favorite part of watching them play in this tournament every year is when Tiger hits a bad shot. And Charlie kind of looks at him like, come on dad.

WALKER: You got better -- you can do better than that.

SCHOLES: Yes, right.

WALKER: Andy, great to see you. Thank you so much.

SCHOLES: All right.

WALKER: Thanks for joining us this morning. "FIRST OF ALL" with Victor Blackwell is up next. Have a great day, everyone.