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Isa Soares Tonight
Israel Says It has Carried Out Raids into Gaza As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Warns a Ground Offensive is Coming; Manhunt Underway in the U.S. State of Maine for a Suspected Gunman After a Shooting Rampage Left At Least 18 People Dead; U.N. Holds Emergency Session amid Israel- Hamas Conflict; Former President of Colombia Calls for Respect for Human Rights of Adversaries; U.S. Army Identifies Maine Shooter as Long-Time Reservist; Hurricane Otis Leaves Acapulco Devastated. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired October 26, 2023 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, HOST, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: Hello and welcome everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, we are following two major stories for you this hour.
Israel says it has carried out raids into Gaza as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns a ground offensive is coming. And a manhunt is underway in
the U.S. state of Maine right now for a suspected gunman after a shooting rampage left at least 18 people dead.
We'll have a live report, of course, from Maine just ahead in the show. But we begin today in Gaza where Israel says it conducted a targeted raid in
the north of Gaza before withdrawing. The Israeli Defense Forces say this video, I want to show you here shows their tanks inside Gaza opening fire.
The IDF say the raid was a clear and sweep operation, that basically is to prepare for a ground offensive.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that ground invasion of Gaza will happen. Israeli forces in Gaza have killed more than 6,000 people,
that is according to health authorities in the Hamas-controlled enclave. CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is live for us in Sderot,
Israel. And Nic, tell us more then, about these targeted raids overnight. How far? How deep did the IDF actually go? And what is it trying to achieve
here?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, large scale, they say, but limited in the scope that it was trying to achieve. A Hamas
cell, they said, that was planning attacks on Israel. How deep did they go? They didn't say. But when that operation was underway, we didn't know it
was underway at the time, but we could see tank fire from here going across where exactly where they were.
So, we now know, now the IDF has in the morning, they said that this raid went ahead, we can now piece that together with what we were watching and
hearing last night. So, you can see the tanks firing, tank shells, red light, sort of tracers on them flying low across the horizon that we hadn't
really seen there much before.
We could hear the heavy machine gun fire, but also there were detonations with that operation last night unlike others that we've heard. This
evening, it's again been artillery as there have been airstrikes and very heavy booms. But these were quite different, and now we have the
explanation from the IDF, we understand that they were part of the operation.
It doesn't seem to us that, that operation went deep into Gaza, but the IDF isn't making that clear, they said. They all came out, but they are saying
that this is a preparation for operations to come, and you would expect the military, if they went in to clear out a Hamas cell that was planning to
target Israel, and whatever they did as part of that operation, if they left it through or if they leave it for a few days without following on,
Hamas will merely fall back in, and --
SOARES: Yes --
ROBERTSON: Try the same thing again or repair what's been damaged. So it does seem as if this is slowly getting closer and closer to that bigger
operation that the prime minister is talking about.
SOARES: Nic Robertson for us there in Sderot, thank you very much, Nic. There are still many questions though, about what could happen during
Israeli ground invasion of Gaza. Our CNN senior international correspondent Sam Kiley joins us now. And Sam has covered fighting in Mosul, Iraq, and
there are a few similarities, I think when we look at what could happen here, Sam.
What we've heard from the United States, I think in the last 24 hours is that they want -- they're urging Israel to essentially learn from their
mistakes, right? They want more measured strategic approach. I think we have an image here for our viewers, it shows how densely populated Gaza is.
Just tap into -- just try to contrast here what we could be looking at from Mosul, examples of Mosul that you've reported on, Fallujah even.
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So I mean -- I mean, there are two things going on here with the American saying kind of take
your time. The first is, the military challenge. Now, if you look at the military challenge, if you've seen from those aerial photographs, you see
the Gaza Strip, 2.3 million people, a million or so or more have been moved out of the north --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: But it's still incredibly highly populated, incredibly dense, it's why you've got these astronomical civilian casualties. Even if the IDF is
saying they're trying to avoid killing civilians. You just can't conduct those operations without substantial casualties. So that's the strategic
picture, because if you have even bigger casualties, then you get the danger of what Biden -- President Biden --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Has warned about, which is the kind of conflagration that spreads much further. He said avoid the mistakes we made over 9/11. They went in
hard against the Taliban, then they switched fire, invaded Iraq, ultimately giving birth to the horrors, that of ISIS.
[14:05:00]
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: And so, there are a lot of regional players that might want to see a regional conflagration, notably Iran. So, there's the caution going on
there. And then you've got the actual combat. Now --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: If you look at somewhere like Mosul, that, like Gaza was riddled with tunnels. Indeed, the IDF have produced images for us for the
international media to look at some of the tunnels that they've been able to identify. These tunnels really lattice the underground, very substantial
-- they call it the metro, but actually, internal mileage, it's probably more than some small town --
(CROSSTALK)
SOARES: We're looking at some of the --
KILEY: Yes, I mean --
SOARES: Tunnels, and this is from 2021, we guess this has evolved somewhat.
KILEY: It could have evolved, some have been destroyed, and there's even talk that the IDF might be developing some kind of special foam to put down
the tunnels. But that is because those tunnels represent a really massive military channel, a challenge. Put troops at a great deal of risk, it means
that Hamas can pop out, more or less at will --
SOARES: You said foam, sorry. Foam?
KILEY: Foam, they're literally talking about the sort of filler foam that you use for --
SOARES: For a home for any --
KILEY: For a home insulation on a giant scale. There's some talk --
SOARES: What about the hostages?
KILEY: Well, this is the key thing. So even if you -- even if you start blocking off tunnels with nonlethal foam, if that is even --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Possible, but let's say they blow them up, they attack them, you're going to trap human beings underground. Now, Hamas denies that they're
using them as human shields, but that's what effectively they'll become. And that is obviously a primary concern of the United States, and indeed of
Israel. They don't --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Want to jeopardize the lives of the hostages. But the Israelis, I think are leaning much more hard into the idea that there's a military
solution to this that they can crush Hamas. Notwithstanding the fact that they've got tunnels, they've got very densely-populated area, we see in
Mosul, that took nine months, a multinational coalition using air forces, using British, Scandinavian, American --
SOARES: Aerial support as well, the whole lot --
KILEY: Air support --
SOARES: Right --
KILEY: Iraqi troops --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Nine months, and there was -- the population there had been --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Largely evacuated. They've moved out. So it was in many ways kind of became a free fire zone for the invading troops or the attacking troops,
the government forces with the coalition.
SOARES: And this is from Mosul, pardon me, this is just -- so viewers can understand it. It's from Mosul back in 2017 --
(CROSSTALK)
KILEY: Yes, and there you go, I mean, that -- and if you look at that, that's bad enough in terms of -- that is a --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Nightmare for infantry troops. Imagine somewhere probably five times as densely-populated with narrower streets that are half or a quarter
is narrow, overhang, overlooked by --
SOARES: Very much --
KILEY: A large building --
(CROSSTALK)
It's a military nightmare. But equally, that could lead to further casualties --
SOARES: But I mean --
KILEY: Right --
SOARES: They did with Mosul, correct me if I'm wrong, they did with of -- you know, the city of Islamic militants. The question is, at what cost
here? Because I know you said how long it took? How many civilians are we talking about here?
KILEY: Well, in Mosul, the civilian casualties were relatively low compared to Gaza --
SOARES: To Gaza, yes --
KILEY: Because they were able to get out. Now, they can't get out of Gaza, partly because they don't want to leave, partly because the Egyptians and
the Jordanians, the Arab world does not want to see mass movement of Palestinian refugees.
SOARES: You and I we're talking about this, this weekend. In fact, we've been talking about this for about two weeks, as we bump into each other in
the corridor. What is your understanding of how or has it evolved of how Israel may do this?
KILEY: Well, the raids that we saw last night, I think, and we've seen others --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: In the past, indeed, one of the early ones, the Israelis also, a bulldoze driver who was hit with an anti-tank missile. This was a similar
raid but on a bigger scale. There is a school of thought that would say that this is actually the patent that the Israelis are going to use. If
they have created something close to what they see as a free fire zone in the north of the country, evacuated people, they can conduct fighting
patrols, reconnaissance in force, going -- go after the Hamas cells.
The -- if they get Intelligence, find them, fix them, kill them, will be there. Doctoring or capture them, and that would relieve them, potentially,
of the dangers of a mass ground assault. But once they embark on a mass around assault, they may conceivably get all the way through Gaza, but then
they've got to deal with the problem that reoccupied this Palestinian territory --
(CROSSTALK)
How long are they going to stay? How do they get out --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Of there, there's a wealth of fantastically complex political problems --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: Even if you overcome the military problems, which are very serious. So there's quite a build-up of military speculation that they may take
their time and do these hit-and-run raids of assault --
SOARES: Yes --
KILEY: We saw last night.
SOARES: Really fascinating, Sam, really appreciate it, thank you. Well, in Gaza, the U.N.'s Palestinian refugee agencies says it will be forced to
stop its operations altogether if it doesn't receive more fuel. Meantime, the IDF has confirmed that it carried out an airstrike in the area where
the family -- "Al Jazeera's" bureau chief was sheltering and killed.
[14:10:00]
Well, al-Dahdouh's family says it lost 12 members in an airstrike on Wednesday. Al Jazeera says they include his wife, son, daughter and
grandson. The IDF says it was targeting Hamas infrastructure. Our Salma Abdelaziz has more, and a warning for you, part of her report are graphic.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A journalist, some called the voice of Gaza mourns over the body of his teenage son.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
ABDELAZIZ: "They're taking their revenge by killing our children", he cries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
ABDELAZIZ: "Al Jazeera" says its bureau chief in Gaza Wael Al-Dahdouh lost his wife, 15-year-old son, 7-year-old daughter, and baby grandson all
killed in an Israeli airstrike, the network says. The reporter had moved his family south of Gaza city after an evacuation order by the IDF,
believing it would keep them safe. This conflict is taking a severe toll on journalists with at least 24 killed so far according to the committee to
protect journalists. Reporters are also facing threats, arrests, and censorship.
(WOMAN WAILING)
No one and nowhere in this enclave is spared, Palestinian say. Death and funerals are constant. Anguish and agony on every corner. Every 10 minutes,
a child is killed, save the children estimates.
"Anywhere else in the world, it is sons who bury their fathers", this man says. "Why is it different in Gaza? Why do we have to bury our children
before they're even grown?" Families desperate to keep their little ones safe are taking refuge anywhere they can find. Packed U.N. shelters are
turning people away.
"We can't live like this, we're 17 people living in a school classroom", this woman says. How long are we supposed to live like this? Tell us world,
how long? "Eking out a living here is difficult and grim. Food, fuel, water, everything is running out.
"I don't even know what the point is of being here", she says. "We're still terrified and we have nothing. No help. We can bear it, we're grown-ups.
But how are these children supposed to handle this?" There is no childhood left here, for the more than 1 million kids now trapped in this hell
escape. And no way, Gazans say, to keep the youngest safe. Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Well, the "Al Jazeera" journalist whose family was killed in Gaza returned to air less than 24 hours after their deaths. This is what he had
to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WAEL AL-DAHDOUH, AL JAZEERA GAZA BUREAU CHIEF (through translator): Thank you for all the messages of solidarity, the calls and for checking on us.
The solidarity and prayers were certainly something very important for us, but we thought it was necessary to return quickly, despite everything. The
area is still burning, as you can see, from the raids and artillery bombardment.
I saw that it was my duty, despite the pain and the bleeding wound, to return quickly, and to meet you through the camera lens and social
networking sites.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Our deepest condolences to Wael, incredible that he had said, thought it was my duty to return. We'll stay across this story for you.
Now, to our second major story we're following for you this hour. An urgent manhunt is going on right now in the U.S. state of Maine. The governor
there says 18 people were killed, another 13 were injured in two mass shootings on Wednesday, and the suspect remains at large.
Police believe 40-year-old Robert Card opened fire both a bar and a bowling alley n the town of Lewiston. A murder warrant has been issued for his
arrest. Maine's governor calls it a dark day for the state.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JANET MILLS (D-ME): I'm so deeply saddened, as is everyone of the 1.3 million people of this beautiful state. This city did not deserve this
terrible assault on its citizens, on its peace of mind, on its sense of security. No city does, no state, no people. No words can truly or fully
measure the grief of Maine people today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Let's bring in CNN senior crime and justice correspondent Shimon Prokupecz, he's in Lewiston, Maine. Shimon, what are you hearing from your
sources as to how close they are to capturing the suspect here? What are you hearing?
SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME & JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: It's just a chase, right now. We keep seeing activity here of the police going out and
doing searches, getting tips, looking for him. But right now, it appears they have no new leads, at least that they're sharing with us, and it's
sort of just a chase, a hunt, this manhunt --
SOARES: Yes --
PROKUPECZ: That now has been going on for so many hours. But it seems that they don't really have any good clue right now as to where he is, but
they're looking, they're going through the woods, they're going into -- they're getting calls from people who think they are seeing things or
hearing things.
[14:15:00]
Something suspicious. And so the police are going out, and doing these searches in these areas. Right now, no one is really on the street, it's
very quiet. There's a shelter in place, telling folks to stay home, don't come out onto the streets. But right now, there is the search that is
ongoing, law enforcement, the police here are out. They're in the woods, they're at different locations, trying to find this guy.
SOARES: And with the suspect on the loose, there must be a huge sense, I suspect of fear as well as for boding. Just talk to what you are hearing --
PROKUPECZ: Oh, yes --
SOARES: From the community there?
PROKUPECZ: No, certainly, there are people who are on edge. We spoke with a father this morning where police were searching. He said that he is
completely freaked out, he has a ten-year-old daughter, who is really nervous. He doesn't want to leave his home, schools closed and many of the
stores are closed. You know, when you drive around here, it's kind of eerie to see this, to see no one on the streets.
To see stores close, there's just emptiness here. But you can sort of feel that people here are on edge, and they don't want to leave their homes,
because they're afraid that, you know, for what they're being told by police is that there is an armed man on the loose, in their neighborhood,
and so they're being told to stay home.
But there is this sense of fear, that certainly both on the law enforcement side, and also on the people who live in this community. I mean, no one
really knows what could happen next, and so, they really want to try to get this guy off the streets.
SOARES: Shimon Prokupecz there for us in Maine, thanks very much, Shimon.
PROKUPECZ: Yes.
SOARES: And still to come on the show tonight, hospitals at breaking point in Gaza. I'll speak to a pediatric neurologist about the challenges they
are facing. That is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Well, returning now to the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Aid agencies and medical workers are warning hospitals are in desperate need of
fuel in order to continue operating. CNN spoke to one hospital director in the north of Gaza about the situation where he is. Have a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ATEF AL-KAHLOUT, DIRECTOR OF THE INDONESIAN HOSPITAL, GAZA (through translator): You know the importance of fuel. There is a huge shortage.
[14:20:00]
We count the days, even the hours, in order to be able to continue our work. The hospital consumes approximately 2,000 liters of fuel daily.
Recently, the hospital stopped functioning, and if it weren't for God's mercy, and the actions of the technical staff of engineers, a catastrophe
would have befallen. The generators completely stopped working.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And it's not just a lack of fuel. The U.N. Humanitarian Affairs Office has warned of severe overcrowding. Not enough staff, medicine or
equipment. All this comes as Israel continues to insist fuel supplies exist, saying they are controlled by Hamas. CNN cannot independently verify
the amount of fuel in Gaza.
I'm joined by Dr. Omar Abdel-Mannan; he's a pediatric neurologist, he does his work extensively in Gaza. He's also the founder of Gazan Medic Voices;
a social media account that's detailing the huge challenges faced by healthcare workers in Gaza. Dr. Omar, thank you very much for coming in.
Let's talk about those challenges, because viewers would have seen some of the videos, some of the reports that we're getting from members of our team
inside Gaza.
Just talk to what you're hearing from other doctors inside Gaza?
OMAR ABDEL-MANNAN, PEDIATRIC NEUROLOGIST: Sure, thank you for having me on the program, Isa. So, we as a group of doctors that have been going into
Gaza have been speaking to many surgeons and doctors on the ground. The health care system has basically collapsed --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: That's what we've been told, now, I know we've heard that many times. A third of the hospitals are basically not functioning. They
are completely unable to take in patients or look after patients. And hospitals that are still functioning are overloaded with patients. So, the
corridors are completely full, choked or blocked with patients piling on top of each other.
Doctors are having to make very difficult decisions in triaging patients at the front door. That means leaving some patients to die, unfortunately, who
have very serious injuries and leaving others to basically --
SOARES: Choosing who's got the best --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Stay --
SOARES: Chance of survival.
ABDEL-MANNAN: Yes, and this is happening even on intensive care units as well. So this is ventilate. This is a capacity issue. We're at a stage
where the hospitals are flooded with patients, this continual bombardment, there's more patients coming in, there's many refugees that have come from
the north to the south, and on top of that, it's compounded by doctors themselves being extremely exhausted.
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: This is a -- you know, this is a workforce that's been working consistently for a week over ten days without rest. I have spoken
to doctors personally who have told me they've been sleeping on the operating table, they stay in-between operations. I've spoken to doctors,
and a dear friend of mine just messaged me today to say that -- essentially, his family was killed whiles he was operating, and whiles he's
in the hospital.
So, you can imagine the psychological trauma and burden --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: That these doctors are going through. I have another colleague who is an intensive care doctor said to me recently that with the
electricity cuts that are happening and the fuel shortages, the ventilators are often not working and they need to rely on backup generators. The
situation is where you've got premature babies in neonatal units.
And these children, these babies, who -- you know, would survive in any other situation, unfortunately have passed away in a number of the
hospitals that I've spoken to the doctors too.
SOARES: I had -- I had one doctor tell us on the show that he -- you know, a mother who waited 11 years for this baby tried through IVF, she said how
do I tell her that I'm not going to have a premature baby, he's not going to be able to have any oxygen, because I don't have -- how do I tell that
to a mother?
So the toll that's taken, not just the physical, the emotional toll, the trauma, it plays into all of this. In terms of medication, medicine, how
are they getting by some of these operations? Talk to us about the injuries they're seeing --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Yes --
SOARES: And also if there's no water, clean water, what impact is that having on children, for example?
ABDEL-MANNAN: Sure, so the first thing to see is, there is a disproportionate amount of children that are affected by this war. So, we
know that, I think almost 3,000 children, I think CNN are reporting 2,000 at least, shouldn't have died in the war thus far. The injuries they're
seeing are unprecedented. That's the words they have said to me.
So, they have seen injuries on a scale and on a level that they have never encountered before, that includes shrapnel, sort of injuries from blasts
injuries, extremely horrific amputations and mutilated bodies affected them. Sorry to be graphic, but that's --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: The reality. And I'll give you an example, so again, watching a video yesterday, which we actually posted on our social media
group, Gaza Medic Voices, we saw a child who was effectively -- had a likelihood of sepsis growing --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Up their leg. They had an amputation of their left leg with little to no anesthetic.
SOARES: Oh, my God --
ABDEL-MANNAN: So no pain control at all. And this child is screaming and having to be amputated, you know, in front of the family.
[14:25:00]
And that's -- as a doctor, I'm a medic, I look after extremely unwell children with neurological disorders.
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: I can't imagine the emotional toll that would be taken on these doctors. And this is continuing with -- you know, there has been a
continual escalation, we are not seeing anything close to a ceasefire right now, which really, you know, begs the question as, how many children --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Need to die before Israel --
SOARES: Yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Calls a stop on this.
SOARES: And you heard in the introduction, the IDF, the Israeli Defense Forces saying Hamas has fuel -- obviously, CNN has no way of verifying
that. Have you heard -- have you heard any of the doctors, any of the hospital saying, you know, they have it, they should give it to us. What is
the counter-argument from hospitals when they hear this from the Israeli side?
ABDEL-MANNAN: So the first thing to say is that we have had very little communications with the hospitals on the ground today, in the last 24
hours. And that's reflective of fatigue, but it's also reflective of likely, unfortunately, difficulty in communication and the electrical cuts.
So that tells me that communication is difficult, that tells me that electricity is clearly running out.
A third of the hospitals have run out of electricity. The Indonesian hospital is completely in the dark for almost 24 hours. They were using
phone -- mobile phone lights to basically shine it on patients while operating on them. But it's inhumane conditions. But that is what siege and
blockade and the bombing has led to. So what we're hearing from, in terms of fuel shortages, they're absolutely there.
The doctors themselves are saying that, you know, the generators are -- there is no fuel coming in. I'm not a politician, I can't --
SOARES: You know, I'm not -- yes --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Sort of comment on, you know, who has the fuel, who doesn't.
SOARES: No, but I'm saying, when you hear -- when doctors hear this from the IDF --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Sure, how do they feel?
SOARES: How do they feel?
ABDEL-MANNAN: Yes, they feel like the world is not listening to them. They feel like they are -- you know, they have patients that they're trying to
prioritize, and they feel that this is essentially -- I'm sorry to say, but a lie. And one of my Palestinian friends yesterday was telling me her
family, very sadly, her aunt's family were killed. And she said to me --
SOARES: Sorry --
ABDEL-MANNAN: That the ceasefire needs to happen now, and unfortunately, this is a green-light they've -- her words were, I need the world to stop
this green-light to genocide. Those were her exact words.
SOARES: And you know, viewers listening to our conversation, Dr. Omar, would see how moved you are. You are supposed to -- will be going into Gaza
on Sunday. How hard is it for you not to be there, not to be helping, given what we are seeing right now?
ABDEL-MANNAN: So, the team we are always excited to go, and we could go there, we always feel extremely welcome, and we want to help in any way,
shape or form. It is heartbreaking, I am -- I can't describe to you -- I mean, the amount of -- it's just -- it's upsetting to see what's happening
there, and not to actually be able to do anything physically to help them.
SOARES: Dr. Omar, thank you very much for coming in, I really appreciate it, I want to shake your hand --
ABDEL-MANNAN: Thank you --
SOARES: Thank you very much.
ABDEL-MANNAN: Thank you so much.
SOARES: We're going to take a short break, we'll be back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Welcome back, everyone. We are watching the U.N. today, where there's been another emergency session,
addressing the Israel-Hamas war.
Today's meeting has wrapped up. It was called to put more focus on the hostage crisis and the deepening conflict in Gaza. Here's some of what we
heard today, have a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN MANSOUR, PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: Why some feel so much pain for Israelis and so little pain for us, the Palestinians?
What is the problem?
Do we have the wrong faith?
The wrong skin color?
The wrong nationality?
The wrong origins?
Let me address all those who have, in these past few days, explained why one should not call for a cease-fire.
How can representatives of states explain how horrible it is that 1,000 Israelis were killed and not feel the same outrage when 1,000 Palestinians
are now killed every day?
GILAD ERDAN, ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: The brutal ISIS-like monsters abducted over 220 hostages from Israel and dozens of other countries,
including babies. Babies, children, persons with disabilities, the elderly and Holocaust survivors, we saw Hamas' brutality in Israel.
I cannot begin to fathom what horrors the hostages are enduring right now as we speak here. Twenty days have gone by and Israel is still counting her
dead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Wednesday, two resolutions calling for pause in the conflict were vetoed by the U.N. Security Council. The spotlight will once again be on
the General Assembly on Friday. It is expected to vote on a draft resolution from Arab states calling for a cease-fire.
CNN senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth joins me now from the United Nations.
Richard, we really got a sense today of just how polarized this conflict is. Three weeks in, talk us through some of the speeches you heard today.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: That's right; very robust speeches and defenses of hardened positions. The Jordanian deputy prime
minister spoke to the General Assembly.
He said that collective punishment is not correct in this circumstance. It's a war crime, he said.
What was interesting, there were two rounds of applause during his speech. You don't hear that often at all, especially on Middle East violence.
Here's a section, as the Jordanian, in effect said, we love everyone, including Jews.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHMOUD HMOUD, JORDANIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: We care about all lives, about all civilians -- Muslims, Christians, Palestinians, Jews, Israelis,
all lives.
(APPLAUSE)
HMOUD: Don't let them tell you otherwise.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROTH: Also speaking, the Iranian foreign minister, with a prominent position, four or five in at the beginning of the day. He said that the
U.S. will end up in a fire if it does not stop Israeli attacks in Gaza.
[14:35:00]
ROTH: He also gave an indication regarding the hostages, which appear to be, at this point, one of the main areas for any kind of deal to be made,
to get everyone out of this crisis.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOSSEIN AMIR-ABDOLLAHIAN, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Hamas is ready to release civilian prisoners. On the other hand, the world should support the
release of 6,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROTH: A lot of speeches today. Their early speakers took up a lot of time. I'm not sure there'll be a vote tomorrow. If there is one, it will be on
the later side.
SOARES: We have seen some voices, at least we have seen some voices today, throwing their support behind U.N. chief Antonio Guterres, following his
remarks on the conflict that led to that swift response from Israel.
Where are we on this feud between Israel and the U.N.?
ROTH: It'll probably quiet down, barring any new inflammatory moment. Israel has been at war, in effect, with the U.N. many times. You don't hear
the ambassador often say of a country, we want the secretary general to resign. That's not going to happen.
SOARES: Richard Roth for us there, thank you very much.
Thank you very much, Richard.
Last week, another resolution calling for humanitarian pause in Gaza was rejected in the Security Council. It was put forth by Brazil and vetoed by
the United States. Brazil, among the nations in the global south, calling for a de-escalation of hostilities.
On Wednesday, I spoke to a heavyweight of diplomacy in the south. Juan Manuel Santos was president of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was integral
to peace talks which, in 2016, ended five decades of deadly conflict between the Colombian government and armed dissident groups, the
revolutionary armed forces of Colombia, also known as the FARC.
In recognition of his efforts to bring Colombia's civil war to an end, he won the Nobel Peace Prize. I started by asking him about whether he thinks
we need louder calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUAN MANUEL SANTOS, FORMER PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA: I think Netanyahu should not go into Gaza, because that will create a tremendous humanitarian
tragedy. And I think that a cease-fire would be ideal right now.
And I'm very sorry to see that the U.N. Security Council is not acting. They should impose a cease-fire. I know how difficult it is. But many lives
are being lost and the fundamental objective of the Security Council -- and of humanity -- (INAUDIBLE) to save lives.
SOARES: And we saw Brazil trying to bring that to the table and not having much luck on that front. You said that you would like to see a cease-fire
as well as a humanitarian pause from the Israeli side.
The Israelis would say, we need to defend ourselves, we have the right to defend ourselves, we want to end Hamas, break the back of Hamas, once and
for all.
I want to tap into your expertise of dealing, of course, negotiating with the FARC. We've seen four hostages, two Israelis, two Americans, being
released. We know the Qataris and Egyptians are working behind the scenes.
Give us your experience of dealing with the FARC and the difficulty, of course, of ending a conflict, a 20-something -year-old conflict, in
Colombia, for which you won a Nobel Peace Prize.
SANTOS: First, one experience that I had that was very useful was to humanize the war. By that I meant, respecting the human rights even of our
adversaries. We went to that extreme.
And that's why I think that right now a crime, which was committed by Hamas -- there's no doubt about it -- should not be responded with another crime,
because that is a snowball that nobody knows where will it end.
The other experience is what Nelson Mandela used to say, a famous phrase, "The most powerful weapon that you can have is sit down and talk."
If anybody can generate some kind of dialogue, to see how we can stop what is happening and try to see a way out, I think this is what should be done.
SOARES: Do you think this government, the Netanyahu government, the most right-wing that we've seen in the history of Israel, given all the rage,
the brutality, the atrocities on October 7, do you think he wants to sit down?
Do you think he wants to be engaging in these negotiations?
[14:40:00]
SANTOS: Unfortunately, I think not.
SOARES: Yes.
SANTOS: However, if he has enough pressure, he might be forced to do something. But quite frankly, seeing what he has done and what he is doing,
I'm not really optimistic.
SOARES: And you think, on that pressure, do you think that pressure is growing?
Or do you think there needs to be louder calls for not just a pause but for a halt altogether and for a moment here to humanize, like you said, this
conflict and to have some sort of negotiation?
SANTOS: I think the pressure is growing. And I hope it grows more and more because that's the only way to find a solution. And not only from the U.S.,
not only from the European, hopefully from all around the world.
For example, what Brazil proposed, a pause, many people are now saying, this, at least, let's have a pause. So I think it is growing.
SOARES: You mentioned Brazil but I'm keen to get your thoughts on what we heard from Colombian president Gustavo Petro -- and you're smiling, because
you already know what I'm going to ask.
We saw and you saw the exchange on social media, a bit of a spat, a lot of eyebrows raised on comments he made on X, now Twitter (sic) -- now it's
called X.
And he said, " if we have to suspend foreign relations with Israel, we suspend them. We do not support genocides."
And he went on to explain what he saw as what he says, genocide being committed by Israel in Gaza.
What do you make of those comments, some may say, incendiary?
SANTOS: Well, I'm afraid that President Petro is too ideological and has a somewhat old-fashioned interpretation of history. And that leads him to
make mistakes.
SOARES: You're such the diplomat.
(LAUGHTER)
SOARES: Final question I've got, because last time we spoke, you said to me, we were talking about the war in Ukraine, of course.
You said many people are questioning what is considered double standards, what happened or is happening in Israel, the Palestinians and the
sentiments, many countries in the south are saying, why is that not condemned?
I want you to have a listen to what the queen of Jordan has said to CNN. Have a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RANIA AL ABDULLAH, QUEEN OF JORDAN: There is a glaring double standard here. And it is just shocking to the Arab world. This is the first time in
modern history that there is such human suffering and the world is not even calling for a cease-fire.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Do you stand with those comments?
Do you stand with the initial comments that you gave us before this conflict even started?
SANTOS: Yes, I do. And that's one very important thing, the basis to start finding a solution, to apply the same standard to everybody. Otherwise, the
sense of injustice will just perpetuate itself and add more gasoline to the conflict.
SOARES: President Santos, always great to have you on the show. Thank you very much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And still to come, tonight a manhunt in the U.S. state of Maine, following horrific mass shootings. We will explain how they unfolded,
that's just ahead. You're watching CNN.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:00]
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SOARES: Welcome back, everyone.
Law enforcement personnel of all kinds are urgently searching for a mass shooting suspect in the U.S. state of Maine. Officials say he is armed and
dangerous and they are asking people throughout the area to shelter in place.
The gunman opened fire at a restaurant and a bowling alley on Wednesday night in the city of Lewiston, killing 18 people. Authorities haven't
established any motive. We have learned the suspect is a heavily trained army reservist. CNN's chief law enforcement intelligence analyst John
Miller joins us now.
John, I know you've been working your sources and there seems to be one theory regarding motive. What can you tell us?
JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, it's a working theory but what investigators are looking at right now is
that Robert Card recently broke up with a longtime girlfriend.
And this is one of several stressors in his life, including a mental health episode he had in the Army, that landed him in the hospital for a couple of
weeks; some challenges finding work and then breaking up with a girlfriend.
But when police were asked why did he pick these two places, why these people, why these victims, they said, well, that goes to motive. I think
the tell there was, these are places he used to frequent with the woman he had been dating, his ex girlfriend.
And we are told by one of our law enforcement sources that she was supposed to meet other friends and play in a tournament at the bar. So the idea of
the working theory, being he went to the bowling alley where they used to go, didn't find her there but opened fire on the place.
Then he went to the bar where she was supposed to be. And we don't know if he found her there or not and opened fire there.
Really from an offender characteristic standpoint, a behavioral science profiler at the FBI would say, it leads you to think he went to the places
that she would rather be with -- the places and people she would rather be with that night than him and tried to exact his revenge and show his anger.
SOARES: Like you said, it is one working theory, at least, that you are getting for now. For international viewers here, John, explain what you
learned about who the suspect is, because this is not some ordinary civilian who grabbed a gun.
This is a man with some 20 years or so, right, of military training. Our colleagues were saying still marksman, an outdoorsman, according to former
colleague in his Army reserve unit.
Does that change the way that law enforcement tries to apprehend him, tries to catch him here?
MILLER: It does. For our international audience, we are a country that has millions and millions of guns. We are a country that has way, way too many
of these so-called active shooter incidents.
But when you look at the alleged suspect here, Robert Card, there's an individual who joined the U.S. Army Reserves in 2002. So he's been in the
Army more than 20 years. He's a Sergeant First Class. His technical job title is a petroleum delivery specialist.
It means, as a supervisor, he's in charge of the logistics literally of getting the fuel in, the trucks and tanks and anything else that moves and
the Army needs. Despite the fact that he's been in the Army Reserves more than 20 years, we are told by the Defense Department he has not had a
combat deployment.
[14:50:00]
MILLER: Even though he prides himself as being an expert marksman and highly trained, he is a guy who has 1,000 acres of land up in Maine with a
house on it and has been a part of that community for a long time.
But for law enforcement, given his training, given his talents with the outdoors, the woods, fishing, hunting and marksmanship as well as his
military training, he's a very challenging, dangerous individual to be hunting for, if he does not want to surrender peacefully.
SOARES: John Miller, really appreciate your analysis, as always. Thank you.
Still to come tonight, Hurricane Otis is gone but has left a trail of destruction in Mexico. We'll take a look at the damage it caused to one
popular resort town. That is next.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
SOARES: Hurricane Otis has passed over the popular Mexican resort area of Acapulco, killing at least 27 people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES (voice-over): This drone video shows the destruction the hurricane left, you can see there, in its wake. The storm surprised many by quickly
reaching the powerful category five status before making landfall, leaving little time for people to prepare. Patrick Oppmann has the very latest for
you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This can't be possible. Acapulco has been destroyed.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Acapulco, a tourist beach town, now the scene of heartbreak and destruction after the category five
Hurricane Otis barreled into southern Mexico.
The sustained winds of 165 mph, building after building ripped apart. Video taken from a drone showing widespread flooding. Some residents say they had
no choice but to evacuate on foot. Power is disrupted for more than 300,000 people, as of Thursday, and food increasingly scarce.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Looking at it now, Acapulco is a total disaster. It's not what it was before. The park was totally
destroyed, the buildings, all the streets. No, I would describe Acapulco now as a total disaster.
OPPMANN (voice-over): As rescue workers reached the hardest hit areas, they reported grim news about the loss of life.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Unfortunately, we received word from the state and city governments that 27 people are dead and four are
missing.
[14:55:00]
OPPMANN (voice-over): Officials said they tried to alert the populace (ph) of the rapidly intensifying storm but there was not enough time for many to
seek shelter, flee or stock up on supplies.
In less than 24 hours, Otis exploded from a tropical storm to a category five hurricane, which can inflict catastrophic wind damage and life-
threatening storm surge. Forecasters admit Otis' sudden strengthening as it traveled over uncommonly warm waters caught them off guard.
High ocean temperatures help fuel hurricanes. 2023 broke records for surface ocean heat, which scientists say is one of the effects of human-
caused climate change. Mexico's president is visiting the region where the storm hit and said his country had never experienced a hurricane like Otis.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR, PRESIDENT OF MEXICO (through translator): This has no precedent in this country, not only because of the way it
gained strength in a short time but also because of the magnitude of the hurricane.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPMANN (voice-over): Forecasters called Otis a nightmare scenario but it could simply be the sign of the hurricanes to come -- Patrick Oppmann, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Patrick Oppmann there, with the late very latest on hurricane Otis.
That does it for us this evening, do stay right here, Richard Quest will be with you after this very short break.
END
