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Hamas And Israeli Troops Clash In Gaza As Airstrikes Intensify; Second Aid Convoy Enters Gaza Strip From Egypt; Al-Aqsa Hospital Doctors Describe "Bloody Day"; Biden And Netanyahu Spoke By Phone On Sunday; Nine Republicans Enter The U.S. Speaker's Race; Police Search For Motive In Detroit Synagogue Leader's Death. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired October 22, 2023 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:00:27]

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello and welcome. I'm Bianca Nobilo in London and welcome back to our breaking coverage of the Israel-Hamas war. Tonight, it's just crossing midnight on Monday in Israel. A senior Israeli official tells CNN there will be no ceasefire in Gaza, even while efforts by the United States and Qatar continue to free more than 200 hostages taken by Hamas on October the seventh.

On Sunday, Israeli troops clashed with Hamas fighters inside Gaza. And this appears to be one of the first skirmishes between the two sides on the ground inside the strip since war broke out just over two weeks ago. And it comes as Israel ramps up its bombardment of the Palestinian territory. And Netanyahu government says it's preparing for what it calls the next stage of its war with Hamas.

We're also hearing from Egypt's Red Crescent confirming that more trucks with life-saving food and water are now getting into the besieged enclave. But the U.N. says that the convoy has not brought in any desperately needed fuel.

Right now for more on our top story, I want to bring in my colleague Sara Sidner, who's in Jerusalem for you.

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you, Bianca. Yes, here in Jerusalem quiet the last couple of days. But there is definitely a sense of nervousness and fear as this war continues, and the fear of the ground defensive and what that might mean and the reaction to that also very much present.

But let's go now to Northern Israel near Lebanon, there have been issues there that have been expanding, including evacuations. CNN's Matthew Chance was at a village that basically the entire village had to be evacuated. He has more on that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (on camera): It's very quiet here in Kiryat Shmona at the moment in northern Israel. But that's mainly because the vast majority of the population of this city of more than 20,000 people town have gone. They've been evacuated. And that's true of towns and villages all across this area, close to the Lebanese border.

There's been an order from the Israeli government for civilians to leave because of the growing threat of rocket attacks and other kinds of attacks from southern Lebanon, where Hamas controls the territory. Palestinian military groups also operate in southern Lebanon as well.

And indeed, the Israeli military say that those attacks have been increasing over the course of the past week or so. With, as you say, drone attacks taking place. It will drone flights at these taking place across northern Israel from Lebanese territory, and anti-tank missiles being fired at Israeli installations along the border. There have been infiltrations of gunmen from the Lebanese side into Israel.

The Israelis have of course, responded in kind, they've been pounding areas with artillery strikes and airstrikes inside southern Lebanon and in Syria as well. We're very close to the border with Syria, also. And they are now warning Lebanon yet again and warning Hezbollah that if this continues, or if it escalates, there will be a very strong response indeed, from the Israeli military. They say they don't want a second front to open up.

But you know, as they're focusing on the south, and as they prepare for that operation, that land operation in Gaza, but they have moved tens of thousands of troops, at least into this region, in preparation for what they say will be a very determined and strong and destructive response against Hezbollah and against Lebanon, if the attacks from that southern part of the country persist or escalate.

And so a lot of tension up here in northern Israel, and if there is going to be a second front that opens up it's here, Sara, where it's likely to start.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: Thank you to our Matthew Chance and his team there near the Israel-Lebanon border. I'd like to go now to Francesca Albanese. She's a U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian territory. She's in New York to present her latest report to the U.N. General Assembly. That will happen on Tuesday. Thank you so much for joining us.

Can you give us some sense of what exactly is in that report? And if there's anything that is particular that you really want to the world to know.

[17:05:03]

FRANCESCA ALBANESE, U.N. SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE PALESTINE TERRITORIES: We're going to present to the General Assembly delves in the concerns the situation of childhood, what does it mean to be a child under occupation. And I've looked at various violations that have been committed against Palestinian children over a span of 20 years when the U.N. and others started to document and collect the figures of children killed, maimed, injured, orphans, left without a home or left without a school. And the full picture is, is extremely cruel. So this is what I

prepared before, of course, the seventh of October. And in a way it paints the picture of a nation which is desperate and absolutely unsustainable.

SIDNER: When you talk about this report, you said that it was compiled before October 7. Now, there is a huge change in what has been happening in Gaza and change, frankly, what has been happening in the West Bank. There have been more violence that has cropped up in the West Bank as well, between the Israeli military settlers and Palestinians.

Can you give us some sense of if this report is going to look also at the West Bank and what is happening there?

ALBANESE: Of course, the report looks at the entire occupied Palestinian territory. So namely, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. You know, I record that before, before the 7th of October, already 2,200 civilians, 2,200 Palestinians will be killed in Gaza, including over 1,100 children in Gaza only.

Would I see that as happened after the seventh of October after the heinous attacks conducted by Hamas is an intensification in -- and also in breadth and scope of the violence against the Palestinians. There is the violence unleashed against an entire population trapped into a besieged enclave in Gaza, and 4,500 Palestinians have already killed. I think over 1,700 are children, but of course there is the ongoing violence in the West Bank, and east Jerusalem at the hands of soldiers and settlements.

So in a way, yes, the situation has changed, but in the sense that it has worsened, and it makes all the more imperative for the international community to intervene. What is the urgent is a ceasefire in Gaza, a ceasefire that protects further -- civilians from further deaths, both the Palestinians and the hostages who are trapped there.

But then there is the necessity to hold to end the Israeli occupation, because this is the root cause of the violence that has been ongoing in the occupied Palestinian territory for decades now.

SIDNER: From your perspective, that is the larger issue here is the occupation itself. I do want to ask you to as your report, look, not only at the Israeli occupation, but also Hamas and what it has done in Gaza with the population there.

ALBANESE: Oh, um, yes or no, in the sense that in all my reports, I have said the Palestinian authorities, both the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, in Jerusalem, there is no Palestinian Authority, any Hamas, in Torian (ph) Hamas in Gaza, do add to a large extent, a layer of complexity and to a large extent, a layer of repression for what is considered many, many freedoms and the enjoyment of many rights.

Hamas is a complex reality which operates militarily in Gaza, but certainly not in the West Bank. And this has not stopped the violence from occurring. And just a correction, I don't think that, well, you a 56 military occupation is a critical problem in and of itself.

But occupation has served to advance the colonization of occupied land because he Israel since 1950s -- '67, has established over 300 colonies which are war crimes under international law, and this illegality has never stopped, on the contrary, it has led to more violence and repression of all over the Palestinian people. And this situation has been denounced as (INAUDIBLE) by international Palestinian and Israeli human rights organizations.

[17:10:05]

SIDNER: Yes, you were speaking about the settlements of which there have been more and more over the years of the Palestinians, looking at this as a destruction of a an official state that they had wanted to have, at some point in time, all of the Peace Accords, all the things that are happening have fallen through.

And at this point, there is little hope for that to occur anytime soon. Thank you so much for joining us, and giving us sort of the preview of what the entire U.N. General Assembly will be hearing on Tuesday.

All right, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, also the former defense minister tells CNN, he believes an Israeli invasion into Gaza is almost certain to come in just the next few days. He talked about it with CNN's Fareed Zakaria, and he also talked about how long he sees Israel being in Gaza, here's some of that report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EHUD BARAK, FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: The goal should be to eliminate any military capability of Hamas and its capacity to wane over the Gaza Strip. We do not intend to erase the ideology or the wishes and dreams of many members of Hamas and all around the world are part of a wider power a Muslim Brotherhood and occupying Tolkien than people in Qatar. We cannot aways the Hamas as entity but as a operator, a military operator in Gaza.

And as the ruler of Gaza, we can do it of course, it cannot be completed from the L (ph), it will need this massive ground operation with 1000, probably tens of thousands of boots on the ground.

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: The Biden administration is from what best we can tell cautioning Israel, to be careful not to go in too big to, you know, kind of devastate Gaza completely. Again, you've done this, is that possible? You know, or is the idea of going to have to go in in massive numbers go door to door, you know, tunnel to tunnel building to building?

BARAK: Look, I would say that I never use the word inevitable in in military affairs. But I would say that the 90 plus percent that will see the coming days major invasion into a Gaza Strip, it will take even to take the northern part of the Gaza Strip will take some time, probably two weeks or whatever three weeks depending on what pace it all be one, but to clean it from the physical and the human resources of the Hamas might take many weeks or several months before it's completed.

And we are aware we do not intend to stay there forever. The whole operation has to face a full different constraint. One is the hostages. The other is the risk that it will spread into much wider conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon will be others. They said one is how to manage this dialogue with international law. We are committed to the international law. And we are fully aware that our universal support and legitimacy will allow the long time and the numbers of people who are citizens who are hit will go in.

In spite of the fact that the reason for them being there is the fact that Hamas coerce them into becoming kind of human shields. We are aware of these constraints. And the last one is the question to whom we can pass the tote because we do not intend to stay there for years to come.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: That was Ehud Barak, the former Prime Minister of Israel and former defense minister making news there talking about the length of time he thinks Israel is going to be in Gaza if it does indeed go in on the ground offensive talking about two to three weeks. And also saying that he believes that offensive on the ground will happen in the next few days. We'll have much more coming up for you. We will be right back.

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[17:16:41]

NOBILO: Welcome back. As Israel steps up its military activity in Gaza, officials at several hospitals say that they're being overwhelmed with casualties. The Al Aqsa martyrs Hospital in central Gaza is close to areas of intense bombardment and a doctor there is calling Sunday quote, a bloody day, saying the situation is nothing short of catastrophic. Scott McLean has details and a warning to you that his report contains graphic images.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Those who arrived at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza alive are the lucky ones. There were five airstrikes this morning near the hospital. This video shows the smoke from one rising nearby.

Some 110 bodies were brought here overnight and this morning. One medical source tells CNN the morgue is now full. The rest of the bodies wrapped in white sheets now lay outside in the heat of the day. Relatives try to identify their loved ones, finding them confirms their worst fears.

Inside the hospital children, including a toddler are among the dead. Several of these victims were found with their names written in Arabic on their legs, an increasingly common marking as parents try to make identification easier if they were their kids are killed. This hospital is located outside of the area of northern Gaza that

Israel has been trying to get civilians to evacuate. On Saturday, the IDF dropped leaflets telling people that everyone who chose to not evacuate from the north of the strip to the south of Wadi Gaza might be considered as a partner for the terrorist organization.

In a statement the IDF confirmed it dropped the leaflets but said it has no intention to consider those who have not evacuated from the affected area of fighting as a member of the terrorist group.

Even those who have managed to avoid the bombs are not out of danger. A trickle of aid 20 trucks were allowed to cross the Rafah Border Crossing from Egypt on Saturday. But that's a tiny fraction of what is needed

MUSTAFA BARGHOUTI, PRESIDENT, PALESTINIAN NATIONAL INITIATIVE: 20 trucks of aid to Gaza will not change much. Gaza needs at least 500 trucks daily of fuel, food, medicines and water. As a matter of fact, for 14 days, Gaza got nothing under the Israeli siege. And its immediate need now is 7,000 trucks.

MCLEAN: Satellite images showed dozens of trucks waiting at the border and dozens more quarter mile down the road all unable to get in. Aid group say that the death toll could skyrocket because of disease and hospitals that are overwhelmed and under supplied with no electricity or generator.

This shopkeeper in central Gaza is keeping the store open by candlelight. The shelves look increasingly bare. The World Food Program says the shortage of basic supplies is pushing gazette (ph) to the edge of catastrophe. The IDF says it killed dozens of terrorists overnight. But now is that the number of airstrikes will only increase I have an expected ground operation. Meanwhile, conditions for the people of Gaza worsen by the hour. Scott McLean, CNN, London.

[17:20:00]

NOBILO: Let's speak to a doctor who's worked in Gaza for well over a decade. Dr. Omar Abdel-Mannan is a pediatric neurologist and the founder of Gaza Medic Voices, a social media account that's detailing the huge challenges faced by healthcare workers in Gaza. And he joins me now from London. Thank you very much for being with us this evening, sir.

DR. OMAR ABDEL-MANNAN, PEDIATRIC NEUROLOGIST: Thank you, Bianca, for having me on the program.

NOBILO: So we keep hearing the tragic refrain of that what is running out in Gaza, the essential supplies, the medicine, the fuel, the water, take us through in terms of the day of -- a day in the life of a medic there about the sacrifices and improvisations that you'd have to be making without those key supplies.

ABDEL-MANNAN: So, as you pointed out, I've been in touch with medic surgeons on the ground in Gaza over the last 15 days. The situation before this war was already dire for them that it was a healthcare system on its knees living in that's continued since 2007.

In the last few days with the escalating bombardment, they are having to make extremely difficult decisions that includes triaging patients out the door to decide who to leave behind, and who to try and salvage. And that's because of this huge number of mass casualties that are walking through the door.

On top of that, they're having to do operations without electricity. And that often means using mobile phones as their source of light. That means using to reduce the use of supplies, they will use anesthetic -- reduced amounts of anesthetic to do operations as well.

Many of the medics I've spoken to have told me that they have been operating and working for seven days straight with little to no rest. One of the surgeons I spoke to mention that he was sleeping on his own operating theater table in between operations.

And not only that, but you have to remember these medics, nurses, paramedics are human beings, they have families, many of them have had families that have been killed or bombed. And at times, they've come in on a shift and found their own family members coming in that through the door. So it's a human catastrophe, to be honest, it's a humanitarian crisis. And the only way to end it is to ceasefire now.

NOBILO: It's just so unbelievably tragic what you're saying. And of course, I would imagine medics and people in your profession, obviously they want to focus on helping people on saving lives and on their profession.

But the pressure, the responsibility, the fatigue, I mean, it must just be so difficult to cope and to feel like you're really giving your best to your patients in circumstances like that. I mean, that truly unthinkable.

ABDEL-MANNAN: Absolutely, I mean, I am often horrified by these stories. And I think I don't know how they managed to function. They often will just zone in on trying to salvage the patients trying to work as hard as they can.

But as you said, the situation is dire for them. They are running out of supplies. There is a lack of basic supplies like antibiotics, fluids, blood products. And again, speaking to sources on the ground, and people waiting at the border, they've told me that all the private stocks of medicines and supplies within Gaza from have been exhausted.

So the aid that comes in is really crucial. It's always welcome to see a coming in. But to be honest, 20 trucks is a drop in the ocean to what they actually need. This area was used to having 200, between 200 and 500 trucks of aids going on a daily basis. Now 20 trucks of aids, I think is not sufficient to keep these people alive.

And as you pointed out, this is not only from a medical perspective. These patients are now suffering from malnutrition. There is a lack of basic water sanitation, and that will lead to infectious diseases spread color are things that we see in humanitarian catastrophes such as Haiti after the earthquake, the recent Libyan dam explosion, you know, these are -- this is unprecedented for the peace of people of Gaza, and they are living in pretty horrific.

NOBILO: Dr. Omar, just one brief last question, too, if I may. I've been speaking throughout the week to IDF spokespeople. And when I put to them the amount of civilian casualties in Gaza, they dispute the figures and say that that can't be trusted.

But from what you're hearing from your colleagues on the ground in terms of the civilian toll, the injuries, what's happening to children. What would you say to those who would dispute the scale and severity of what is being reported?

[17:25:09]

ABDEL-MANNAN: I would say you can look at any of the major organizations like the United Nations, World Food Bank, Oxfam, these have all reported Hamas casualties and large numbers of civilian deaths, this population is 50 percent of the population is under the age of 18. So women and children are being disproportionately affected by this this war.

And these are figures that I'm not quoting these are figures quoted by international bodies well recognized. And if, you know, if there is bombing in civilian areas, and bombing of mosques like Al Hilah Hospital, or places of worship and places of refuge, then of course, there'll be civilian deaths.

And that's what they're seeing. And that is why world leaders need to sit down and negotiate an immediate ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid enter from Gaza -- from Rafah from the north, from every direction possible, because this is human catastrophe waiting to happen or unfolding before our very eyes.

NOBILO: And we've heard from Israel that there will be no ceasefire, even though as you point out, it is a medical necessity at this point. Dr. Omar Abdel-Mannan, thank you so much for joining us and of course, our hearts go out to what all of your colleagues are doing out there. Thank you.

ABDEL-MANNAN: Thank you for having me.

NOBILO: Straight ahead on our continuing coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, U.S. President Joe Biden was working the phones on Sunday will tell you who he was calling and the message that he was bringing to them. When we come back.

(COMMECIAL BREAK)

NOBILO: More now in the Israel Hamas war, as an Israeli official says there will be no ceasefire amid efforts by the U.S. and Qatar to free more than 200 hostages. Israel says the war could soon enter its next stages. Israeli troops clashed with mass fighters inside Gaza earlier today on Sunday, as Israel ramped up its aerial bombardment of the Palestinian territory. Tonight we're also hearing from Palestine Red Crescent that more

trucks with much needed food, water and supplies have made it into Gaza. But aid workers say it's not nearly enough to combat the catastrophic humanitarian situation there.

[17:30:00]

SIDNER: All right, on the diplomatic front, U.S. President Joe Biden is working the phones, talking to key allies in Europe and Canada. He also spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Sunday. The call comes amid a report that the U.S. was trying to slow down the ground incursion that is being planned by Israel. A senior Israeli official has denied that report.

But two sources have told CNN that the U.S. is hoping a delay will allow more time to try and negotiate to get some more hostages out of Gaza as well as getting humanitarian aid that is desperately needed in Gaza for its civilians in. President Biden is spending the weekend in his Delaware home. That is where a CNN White House reporter Priscilla Alvarez is joining us now. What more can you tell us about what Biden has been doing all day there to try and work up some support to get a humanitarian corridor and also to try and get hostages out of Gaza?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, like you said he has been working the phones. He has had multiple calls today with world leaders, including European and Canadian leaders, and notably another call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This marks the eighth call that the two leaders have had since those terror attacks on October 7th. And according to a report from the White House, the two leaders discuss developments in the ongoing situation in Israel and Gaza. The President affirmed the flow of critical assistance to Gaza and they discuss efforts to release hostages.

Now, of course, all of these calls come both on the heels of President Biden's trip to Israel, but also as an invasion looms into Gaza. And as U.S. officials are working around the clock to try to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas. Friday was a positive signal for officials after they saw the release of two American hostages. And Secretary of State Antony Blinken on networks today, saying that he is still hopeful that they can secure the release of more hostages though, of course, there still remain questions over how many of those are U.S. citizens.

U.S. officials have characterized it as only a handful and also in what condition they're in and where they may be whether they're together or held in separate areas across Gaza. So all of this is what the administration is working very closely on in something that the President has talked about with the Prime Minister of Israel, as well as with other leaders.

Now, President Biden has also been briefed over the course of the day by his national security team that includes Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. So this, of course, is all developing very quickly, and the White House is keeping eyes on all of it. Sara? SIDNER: Priscilla Alvarez, thank you for your reporting there in Delaware, where the U.S. President, as you said, is working to try and make some move when it comes to getting hostages out of Gaza. All right, let's go now to the southern border between Israel and Gaza. That is where we find our Nic Robertson, who says he has been seeing a bombardment in Gaza like he has never seen before. Nic, what exactly are you experiencing there and the people around you? What are you seeing?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. It's been a very sustained, very heavy level of missile strikes and artillery and even tank fire we've seen over the past couple of hours. Right now, it does seem to be subsiding a little. But it does seem to fit what we've heard from IDF officials that they would increase the number of strikes on Gaza, ahead of a possible ground incursion.

This doesn't mean to say that there's going to be a ground incursion tonight, that we have very little indications of if and when that may happen, although it still seems to remain very, very likely. There are a lot of troops in place that we've seen today along the border with Gaza, not far from here.

But some of the heaviest strikes we've been hearing have been coming in the northern area of Gaza. And we're beginning to get some reports in from the Jabalya camp and other parts of northern Gaza, about impacts there. So these strikes do seem to be that we're hearing from here do seem to be concurrent with reports that are beginning to emerge from Gaza at the moment.

SIDNER: Nic, you know, you've been there in Sderot for such a long time, basically, since almost the beginning of this war that Israel declared officially on Gaza. Is there any sense from you because we've been heard hearing from Ehud Barak, the former Prime Minister of Israel and a former defense minister, that he believes that that ground incursion is going to happen in the next few days, but at the same time, we're hearing reports that the U.S. President is trying thing to slow that down to try to get hostages out and humanitarian aid in. What are you hearing there and do you have any signs that this ground incursion is closer and closer to the possibility?

[17:35:15]

ROBERTSON: You know, if you talk to some people here, particularly some of the retired generals, they will tell you, look, it doesn't matter how long we keep our forces out in the field, we can have them there for weeks if we need to. In fact, I was talking to one former IDF soldier who told me, look, I fought in the 1967 war. He said, we were kept out in the field, he was an officer, then he said, we were kept out in the field, waiting for a month before the incursion.

We were frustrated. We were told we were going to go. We were not going to go before the offensive, rather not the incursion back then. And he said, actually, we spent a lot of time training. And he said, I believe that we had greater success there in 1967, because we waited so long to go in. The other narrative that comes from former generals is that while the troops are waiting there in the field, and these airstrikes continue, that is allowing Israel to pick off more of the Hamas military commander targets that they want to go after, we're very aware.

And they are very aware as well, when you ask them about the civilian casualties that are happening, while Hamas is being targeted. But they're saying it is having a military effect. So the waiting again, is still productive for the military in terms of trying to go after the Hamas leadership.

But on top of that, they're also aware that the window is closing. The window of international will of opinion that says Israel can still have an incursion, that window that says that it's closing because the international community wants Israel to stop the civilian casualties inside of Gaza, to have a humanitarian pause to allow a free flow of aid trucks into Gaza, things that aren't happening at the moment, because Israel is afraid that that aid will end up in the hands of Hamas, and strength -- and therefore strengthen Hamas.

So I think all of this seems to be in the balance. And add into that balance, the fact that, you know, Prime Minister Netanyahu can't say no, when President Biden puts pressure on them because the United States supplies munitions to Israel. But then Prime Minister Netanyahu is in a difficult political position already.

There are a lot of hawks in his government. There's a lot of strength of feeling in the population in the country that Hamas needs to have and be shown a very tough military response for their barbaric attacks of two weeks ago. So all of this is in play at the moment but it doesn't seem at the moment, despite this to be adding up to a decision not to have an incursion. It still feels it hasn't happened. But that's the direction that everything is still headed in at the moment, Sara?

SIDNER: Nic Robertson, thank you so much to you and your team there in Sderot. And our continuing coverage will continue in just a bit here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:40:21]

NOBILO: Turning now to Capitol Hill, the deadline to enter the U.S. House of Representatives Speaker race is now closed. Nine House Republicans will make their case before the Republican conference on Monday. The House has been paralyzed without a speaker for nearly three weeks, which ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy calls embarrassing. Manu Raju has more on this ongoing impasse.

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: House Republicans remain in turmoil almost three weeks after the unprecedented ouster of a sitting speaker. Kevin McCarthy was pushed out after eight Republicans joined with Democrats and voted out Kevin McCarthy as speaker. This was initiated by House Republicans and they have not been able to coalesce around anyone to replace McCarthy as of yet. And the House can't do any business, no legislating at all until the speaker is elected. And they have been unable to unite behind any candidate firstly nominated Steve Scalise, the House Republican majority leader. He was unable to get the votes to be elected speaker. He bowed out before going to the floor. Jim Jordan, the House Judiciary Committee Chairman was nominated then to be the next Speaker of the House. He did go to the floor, three times. And he failed to win over enough support, he could only afford to lose four Republican votes on his party line vote. He lost 25 on his third ballot.

Ultimately, he bowed to reality and stepped aside. And now nine Republican candidates have filed to run for speaker, unclear which of those nine will ultimately get the Republican nomination. And more importantly, who can get the 217 votes that they would need on the floor of the House to be elected speaker. It is unclear if any of them can given the sharp divisions within the ranks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the biggest FU to Republican voters I've ever seen.

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): This conference is absolutely broken.

REP. DUSTY JOHNSON (R-SD): The Americans are sick of it. And I know most members of the House are sick of it. It is time for big boys and big girls to stop with the nonsense.

REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): The swampy a swamp gets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to get over it and we need to move on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We cannot have an entire branch of government offline.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got to get our act together because I'm getting calls from my constituents and say, what the hell is going on with you Republicans?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think history will assign the blame in the right places.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAJU: Now a bit here about the timing on Monday evening, that's when the House Republicans will meet behind closed doors yet again. Those candidates will try to make their pitch to the conference. They'll answer questions from their members. They'll do that one by one. And we'll see how that ultimately goes. Then Tuesday morning is a significant vote behind closed doors, Republicans will have a secret ballot leadership election.

That means that majority of their conference will vote to nominate the next speaker candidate, that person it will be a secret ballot election. So it's unclear exactly who's the front runner and who might emerge here. But we'll see if how close that that person who gets the nomination is to the magic number on the House floor, 217 votes to be elected speaker. This is challenging for any Republican candidate because in the narrowly divided House, there are only 221 Republicans. Democrats are going to vote for Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader.

That means that person, that candidate, the Republican nominee, must limit defections in the ranks. And it is unclear if any of them will be able to do that after we have seen just Republicans going after each other, after McCarthy was pushed out unable to get behind anyone, unable to do the nation's business and much businesses waiting, dealing with aid to Israel, calls for aid to Ukraine, avoiding a government shutdown by mid-November.

None of that can be dealt with. The Republican agenda is completely stalled amid this GOP leadership infighting. Can they get it resolved this coming week? That remains a huge question but a possibility it could still be unresolved and slip into another week if they can't get their act together behind the nominee.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

NOBILO: Since the war between Hamas and Israel began, we've seen displays of support around the world for both Israel and the Palestinian people. Thousands joined the demonstration in the Belgian capital of Brussels on Sunday, calling on E.U. leaders to push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. People from Madrid's Jewish community gathered together to demand the release of more than 200 people taken hostage when Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7th.

And the streets of Sarajevo in Bosnia were filled with demonstrators voicing support for the Palestinian people. And here in London, some 15,000 people came to Trafalgar Square this afternoon for a rally focused in part on calling for the safe return of hostages being held in Gaza.

Joining me now to discuss this is Claudia Mendoza, co-CEO of the Jewish Leadership Council and one of the organizers of the protest. Thank you very much for being with us this evening, Claudia.

[17:45:02]

CLAUDIA MENDOZA, CO-CEO, JEWISH LEADERSHIP COUNCIL: Thank you, good evening.

NOBILO: What message were you trying to send to the country presumably the government and the world with your protests?

MENDOZA: We were really gathering today to send a unified message that the hostages must be brought back home. What we've seen over the last few weeks, is the worst atrocity to fall upon the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Apocrine (ph) over of a magnitude that no one ever expected to see, in living memory of the Holocaust. The community came out really united and speaking with one voice, that it's important that all hostages are released immediately.

NOBILO: The Metropolitan Police released some very alarming statistics about the rise in hate crimes since the Hamas attack and Israel's retaliation in the form of airstrikes on Gaza. The Islamophobic attacks increase around 130 percent, I believe, that the anti-Semitic attacks have increased by approximately 1,300 percent. Have you noticed a difference? Or did you encounter resistance or any threats when you were taking part and leading this protest?

MENDOZA: So we know from previous experience, sadly, when there is conflict in the Middle East, there is a spike in anti-Semitic attacks. This has been unprecedented in terms of the scale. I personally haven't experienced anything myself. There were a couple of arrests made each day at the protest. But by and large and went off very peacefully, we had a great police presence. And CST which is the Community Security Trust, securing the process for us today.

NOBILO: I'm very glad that you haven't experienced anything directly yourself. Is there a concern or a tension that Israel's response to this heinous terrorist attack, as you say, a scene of violence that the Jewish community has not encountered since the Holocaust, that the strength of Israel's response may lead to an increase of anti-Semitism around the world as more civilians are killed in Gaza from airstrikes and possibly a ground incursion?

MENDOZA: Well, I mean, the irony is, is that we saw a surge in anti- Semitism before Israel had even responded the day of the attacks of October the 7th attacks, we already saw a response towards the Jewish community as someone very aptly put it, when Israel does something wrong, anti-Semitism increases. And when something is done to Israel, anti-Semitism increases.

So you see a massacre of proportions that we've not seen for 75 years, and then you have people coming out and attacking Jews. So I do expect there to be continued attacks in anti-Semitism against the Jewish community. But I don't know that Israel's response is necessarily to blame for that.

NOBILO: Claudia Mendoza, thank you so much for joining us today. We appreciate your time.

Still to come on the program for you, a synagogue leader in Detroit was found stabbed to death this weekend. What police are saying about the investigation after the break?

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[17:50:36]

SIDNER: From here in Jerusalem to the U.S. where police are looking for a suspect and a motive in the killing of a Detroit, Michigan synagogue leader, Samantha Woll's body was discovered with multiple stab wounds at her home Saturday morning. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Michigan's governor described, Woll as a source of light and a beacon in her community. Omar Jimenez is live for us in Detroit. Omar, what more are you learning?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, at this point, as you mentioned, they're still trying to find the suspect in this case, but also a motive as well. I think initially, just looking at the headline, a Detroit synagogue leader found stabbed to death, of course, really brings people to potentially jump to conclusions and it's exactly what police are cautioning against at this point.

We actually just got the statement from the Detroit Police Chief not too long ago, and he said that this time, despite the investigation remaining ongoing, they stress that that no evidence so far has surfaced suggesting that this crime was motivated by anti-Semitism. But also as part of, they did not include as part of that statement, I should say that they ruled out this involves anti-Semitism. So it's why they are urging caution that this is the initial stages of an investigation.

Now what we do know police say that just behind me here in just near downtown Detroit. On this block was where the body of 40-year-old Samantha Woll was found. Police say there was a trail of blood leading from the body to her home. And that's where they believe the killing actually took place.

Now Woll was 40 years old and of course a member of this community but known throughout the state, from community members up to elected leaders in this state, very politically active. The Attorney General in this state talked about how Woll helped her with her reelection campaigns, always by her side, always showing up with a smile on her face.

She's been -- they've been having a memorial service over the course of today. Woll has as many people have reflected on her life. A state senator who knew Woll very well talked about how she was just at a wedding with Woll, the night before her body was found Friday night, and how the one constellation she has is some of the last memories she has of her were of her smiling and laughing.

This happened, we are trying to figure out how this happened and community members are trying to figure out how to process it. And now police and investigators are trying to figure out why.

SIDNER: All right, Omar Jimenez live for us with his team in Detroit.

Now since Israel's war on Hamas began, countries have been working to bring their citizens home to get them out of danger here in Israel, Michael Holmes reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Out of harm's way, countries around the world are flying their citizens out of Israel on repatriation flights filled with foreign nationals fleeing the Israel- Hamas war. Many of the people leaving Israel were there to earn a living better than they could in their homeland.

Officials in Thailand say at least 30 of their citizens have been killed since Hamas launched its attack on Israel two weeks ago. Eight bodies have been returned. Many of the dead worked on Israeli farms. The Thai government says it's working to return the other bodies and also repatriate thousands of Thai citizens who want to leave Israel. PIROJ CHOTIKASATIEN, THAILAND PERMANENT SECRETARY FOR LABOR (through translator): The number of Thai citizens who wish to return home keeps increasing. We're trying to get Thai people back as much and as soon as possible.

HOLMES (voice-over): Emotional reunions in Manila as a flight carrying Filipinos who are working in Israel returned home. Many of the evacuees were employed as caregivers in Israel when the attacks happened, and some say they still can't shake what they saw.

MYLENE RIVERA, EVACUEE (through translator): Apart from the gunfights, explosions were heard along with the sirens. I felt nervous I was shaking from fear.

HOLMES (voice-over): More than 200 agricultural students from a work study program in Israel flew back to Nepal last week. Ten of their group were killed in the attacks. On Saturday, the bodies of four students were flown back to Kathmandu. Grief stricken families say it's hard to believe they are gone.

[17:55:02]

DURGA NEUPANE, AUNT OF DECEASED STUDENT (through translator): He used to say that he would return home, build a concrete house and bring all of us together now even his body is not here.

HOLMES (voice-over): The family say the students were full of hope when they left, a chance to earn money as much as $15,000 and learn new skills in Israel's high tech agriculture sector. This father says his son was going to use his savings to start a farming business back in Nepal.

BEJHULAL DANGAURA, FATHER OF DECEASED STUDENT (through translator): If I had known about this danger, I would have stopped him. I thought he was going there on a study visa, and it would be good for him in his bright future.

HOLMES (voice-over): A future cut short like so many others caught in the middle of a conflict far from their home.

Michael Holmes, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: All right, that is all for me here in Jerusalem. I'm Sara Sidner.

NOBILO: And I'm Bianca Nobilo in London. Do stay with CNN, we'll have more news for you after a quick break.

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[17:59:54]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You are live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington joined by my colleague Erin Burnett who is live for us in Tel Aviv, Israel. We begin this hour with the latest escalation of Israel's war with Hamas. Israel's military is ramping up its bombardment of Gaza.