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The reporting. Please keep us posted as well on the status of the little boys mother. And cnn this morning continues right now. Announcer this is cnn Breaking News its the top of the hour. Were glad youre with us. Im poppy harlow with Phil Mattingly in new york. Erin burnett live for us in tel aviv, israel. Its 8 00 a. M. Here in new york city, 3 00 p. M. In israel. And right now Antony Blinken is meeting again with israeli leaders. As a dire humanitarian situation is escalating in gaza. Just a short time ago, blinken said that the u. S. Was actively working to make sure that humanitarian assistance like water, food, and medicine could get into gaza. Blinken also said yesterday that a Safe Passageway via the Rafa Crossing would be open. But overnight, those negotiations appear to have stalled. The Israeli Prime Ministers Office saying this morning, quote, at the moment, there is neither a ceasefire nor humanitarian assistance in the Gaza Strip In Return for the exit of foreigners. We also just learned that President Biden is canceling a planned trip he had to colorado so that he can attend National Security meetings. And that comes as israel says that there are more hostages than we previously knew about. The number now stands at 199, including some americans. We are covering this from across the world. We begin with erin burnett live in tel aviv, israel. Erin, the Secretary Of State is back in israel. There has been just a nonstop questions about what the status of the rafa Border Crossing is at this point. Do we have any idea . No. We know its closed. But we dont know. We know there are negotiations ongoing, but pieces of it leak out. The egyptian Foreign Minister just over the past hour here, as weve been live has said that theyre making no progress towards opening that border. And that border, of course, you dont just have a lot of people who want to come out, including americans, who have amassed there along that border, the Southern Gaza border with egypt, but also all the humanitarian aid waiting to come in is also along that border. And it is still completely closed, and you know, you dont know until you know with a negotiation, but certainly whats coming out of it is not positive, but the context, obviously, phil and poppy, is that the Prime Minister netanyahu and Antony Blinken are in a meeting right now and blinken has met with leaders in egypt, as well as jordan, and around the region. So, obviously, thats going to be part of the conversation today, but as we have this feeling of imminent and i know weve been saying it for days, but things are changing and things are moving. The status of that border becomes more and more crucial. But as we speak right now, it is closed, phil. You heard explosions earlier, erin. Often, the sound of them being intercepted by the iron dome that is so effective. We have seen debris in peoples backyards, even near tel aviv. Reminding people, the city behind you is a big, bustling metropolis. What is it like this morning there . Reporter i will say, you are right, it is sort of the Heart And Soul of the energy of israel here, tel aviv, bustling is the one thing it hasnt been since this happened. It has been really still. Yes, there have been rockets that have been coming in here, you either get the alert if youre in the immediate area or if you hear the explosions, if youre near, but outside the potential area that they determine to be likely for impact. And then, that happens in peoples backyards. And being under the iron dome, at one point, we had 60 rokcket come in. And when that happens, those Rocket Pieces have to go somewhere, right . They get intercepted, they get blown up. Then thoey have to come down. They do in forms of debris. And some of them actually break through. We saw Apartment Buildings struck. A fire in a building that we subsequently had to seek shelter in because of more rockets coming in. But thats the reality of it. And that shrapnel coming through, those broken rockets, even ones that are intercepted in part can be deadly for people. Thats exactly what youre talking about, in somebodys backyard. It gives you a sense of the randomness and the potency and fear that people feel. I want to bring in sara sidner now, because she is no far north. Shes in haifa, israel. That is where American Families have been gathering who are boarding a ship to leave israel. Obviously, an incredibly hard country to get out of. Sara, you and i have spent so much time in ukraine, you have so many land borders possible for people to get out, here you dont. You simply dont. And water is perhaps the main means of egress for many people. And thats what youre seeing. Yeah. It is interesting. There have been Chartered Flights, but the flights are just far and few between. The commercial flights. A lot of them get canceled, but there are very few, very few seats for people. At first, we were seeing tons of people coming in, because the reservists were coming in from all over the world. But going sout is a different thing for families who want to leave. Particularly for americans, theres a large contingent of americans who are here. About 20,000 of them contacted the state department, not necessarily to leave, but to get information and some of them should get information to try and leave israel, because theyre having such a hard time over the past week trying to get out. It just wasnt working. What we have noticed today is this ship, the rhapsody of the seas, which is owned by royal caribbean, and basically the United States has asked to use the ship in order to take americans out, weve seen mostly families, to be honest. Its mostly families with small children who are making the decision to leave. This ship holds more than 2,000 passengers, but weve only seen a few hundred americans. And again, it is oftentimes a mother, father, and three children, or two children, who are leaving, often the parents feel very strongly that they want to make sure that their kids are safe, are secure. There is a lot of conflict in leaving, as well, though. The families sort of trying to figure out what the right thing to do is. For many of them making sure their kids are safe and making sure their kids do not feel afraid, as many of them have expressed is the most important thing for these families, who some feel they should stay, because they want to be here to help the country as it goes through this cycle of war. But it is remarkable to see this, having to use a ship. And i want to get out of the way, let you just kind of get an idea of just how big this ship is. I mean, it is a proper cruise ship that has all the accoutrement onboard, and we are seeing, it is about to leave. It has been here since this morning, waiting for people to board, and then at 2 00 is the cutoff. It is now, lets see, it is now 3 00. So you notice, there is no way to get on now. Its no longer available to actually board, because people were supposed to be here by 2 00. They are very close to leaving. They have just taken some of the ropes away and actually, i think it is moving back just a tiny bit. But, yeah, this is the way that people are evacuating israel. Every family we spoke with, by the way, says that they will be back. They are not leaving forever. Erin . Thats a pretty incredible image, a powerful image to see in this time, in this day and age, people boarding a ship like that to try to leave. And i think that many complicated feelings for people in seeing that. As sara says, about a tenhour on that boat to get to cyprus and then from there, americans will be able to find their way back to the United States. Sara sidner, thank you very much. And phil, back to you in new york. Thanks, sara. Joining us now is john kirby, the National Security Council Coordinator for coordinations at the white house. I want to get to the rafa Border Crossing and americans attempting to get out of gaza in a minute, but to start, americans have canceled their Domestic Travel today in order to stay at the white house for National Security meetings. We know that the Prime Minister invited him to israel. Is there any connection between those two things . The reason to stay home today, phil, was really to make sure that he could stay focused on whats going on between our israel and hamas. He will have National Security meetings today. I dont have any travel to speak to or announce with respect to israel. There was an invitation from the Prime Minister, but again, no travel to speak to right now. The Secretary Of State is back in israel today, meeting with the Prime Minister, among many others. Yesterday, he said the Rafa Crossing will be open. Counselor services told people we were speaking to, americans in the area, it may be open. This morning, the egyptian Foreign Minister said there has been no progress on the opening. Israel says no arrangements for an opening. I understand this is complicated. Where does it stand right now for americans that are waiting . Right now, its still closed. And obviously, we want to see it open. Secretary blinken has been working on this very, very hard in the region. Youre right, hes back in israel, another chance to consult with our israeli counterparts. We want to see that gate opened. But i just cant tell you with perfect predictability, what thats going to look like. Were hoping, hoping that some time later today, it could be open for a period of hours. But again, we just have to kind of wait and see how this goes. We had had those hopes over the weekend, only to see that those hopes were dashed. So were going to keep working at this very, very hard. Whats driving the bottleneck . Is it one specific country, one specific issue . I think theres a couple of things at play here. Number one, of course, the egyptians, they have to be willing to have that gate open and have a flow of Human Traffic through that. And so were in discussions with them about what that could look like and how that could be managed in a way that protects egypts National Security interests, as well. They have a right to look after their own population, of course. The other aspect is hamas, phil. I mean, they are literally throwing up roadblocks to prevent people from moving from north dpgaza to South Gaza To G towards the rafa gate. Theyre actually trying to encourage people to remain human shields, as they try to tunnel up underneath their homes and headquarter in their schools and hospitals. Hamas has also caused a bit not a bit, caused a significant amount of the problem. There appear to be at least some level of a humanitarian breakthrough yesterday when jake sullivan, the National Security adviser, said there had been an agreement to turn water back on into gaza. The israelis confirmed that about an hour or two later. Now the gazan water authority, they denied that water is turned back on. Do you know what the issue is there . Were still looking into those conflicting reports. Obviously, as mr. Sullivan said yesterday, we believe its essential that humanitarian assistance, food, water, medicine, also electrical power remain available to the people of gaza, as much as possible. They are the victims here, too. They didnt ask for this. We want to make sure humanitarian assistance continues to get in. Cant confirm exactly where the situation is with the water, but it is something that also has been high on secretary plblinkes agenda as he travels through the region. We received a statement from the idf that says theyre in the midst of implementing an evacuation of israeli towns and citizens near the northern border with lebanon. Do you view this, is there any indication that this is the start of a hezbollah operation or concerns that the spillover is happening now . Its worrisome, the possibility of having some sort of Northern Front open up. As weve said all along, we dont want to see this conflict widen. We certainly dont want to see the idf have to devote resources to a second front. It seems to me like theyre taking the prudent steps that they feel like they need to take for citizens that live up there. I would say as of this morning, we havent seen any firm indications that hezbollah has decided to go all in here and truly open up a second front for the idf, but were watching this closely. Thats one of the reasons why, of course, weve moved Military Assets in the region to make it clear to any wouldbe actor that might want to get involved and broaden this conflict that they shouldnt do it. The president had a pretty indepth interview on israel on whats happening last night. Theres one piece of sound i want to play for you. Take a listen. I think that it would be a mistake to for israel to occupy gaza again. But going in and taking out the extremists, the hezbollah is up north, but hamas down south is a necessary requirement. There hasnt been any dispute from israeli officials today in terms of what the president laid out there. But my question is, if you go in and take out hamas, what fills that vacuum . Does the u. S. Have planning . Have you thought through the what happens next part of this process . Were talking to the israelis about as much of this as we can, and the what next and the dayafter kinds of questions. But obviously, theyll have to make these decisions. I wont speak for them, but i dont know that governance in gaza is really what theyre focused on right now. Theyre focused mostly on trying to get at hamas targets. And its difficult to target in there, because its so heavily populated and very urbanized. So, again, i think the israelis are trying to work through this step by step. And i dont want to get ahead of where they are. But the president , i think, was representing real candid, forthright concerns about the challenges that would meet Israeli Forces, should they try to have some sort of longterm presence in gaza. Did the issue of leadership in gaza come up with this call with president Mahmoud Abbas and the palestinian authority. I wont talk about the specifics of the diplomatic conversations. You know were careful about that. We all want to see the people of gaza protected. We all want see innocent civilians not harmed. Have the ability to leave, have the ability to get food, water, and medicine as appropriate. And the president Still Believes, even for all of this conflict, he Still Believes in the promise of a twostate solution. That the palestinians deserve their own state, a place where they can call home. Were still affixed to that notion. I know the president , there are no travel plans to announce, but would the president like to travel back to israel . Hes been to israel many, many times. I have no doubt in my mind that hell go again. He knows that this is a critical time for the nation of israel and for the israeli people. He has deep and abiding affection and respect for them, but i dont have any travel to speak to this morning. Appreciate your time, as always. President john kirby, thank you. Thank you, if y phil, for th. More than 2,700 people have been killed in the strikes on gaza so far. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced. Many Heading South to try to leave through that southern crossing. The latest images from the ground in gaza, next. All ri. You are looking at live pictures of the rhapsody of the seas, the giant cruise liner that the u. S. Government has brought into haifa, israel. It is just pulling out from port. Our sara sidner has been reporting throughout the morning. Americans have been boarding that ship. It is full, closed, room for no one else on that ship. S it is heading ten hours to cyprus where americans will be able to board commercial flights and make their way back to the United States. This comes as here in televiv, coming from haifa, we are seeing some really heavy storms. And im showing to those to you right now for a very specific reason. Because when we have seen these blow through here, and we felt some initial raindrops, so this is probably going to be moving our direction pretty quickly. Youre looking north to have teltel aviv and across the skyline where we are, still some sunshine. Very significant, because the Meteorological Service has said that the ferocity of these thunderstorms coming from Northern Israel to the south could put both marine avessels and aircraft at risk. They are extremely severe. We have felt the brunt of them ourselves. Its literally like a monsoon. Even the heavyduty tents that we would set up for profit last night, when one of these came through that wasnt even forecast, completely pblew our tents down. It was very severe and absolutely this impacts israels plans on whether its going to do or whether its going to be conducting a Ground Offensive. This is significant and there was a forecast for these storms to be rolling even, even to the south of here coming through gaza where there could be an accumulation of up to half an inch. That is a lot of water where we are, which is a complete and utter dust bin along some portions of that border. It comes as this morning, the president of the palestinian authority, Breaking News<\/a> its the top of the hour. Were glad youre with us. Im poppy harlow with Phil Mattingly<\/a> in new york. Erin burnett live for us in tel aviv, israel. Its 8 00 a. M. Here in new york city, 3 00 p. M. In israel. And right now Antony Blinken<\/a> is meeting again with israeli leaders. As a dire humanitarian situation is escalating in gaza. Just a short time ago, blinken said that the u. S. Was actively working to make sure that humanitarian assistance like water, food, and medicine could get into gaza. Blinken also said yesterday that a Safe Passageway<\/a> via the Rafa Crossing<\/a> would be open. But overnight, those negotiations appear to have stalled. The Israeli Prime Ministers Office<\/a> saying this morning, quote, at the moment, there is neither a ceasefire nor humanitarian assistance in the Gaza Strip In Return<\/a> for the exit of foreigners. We also just learned that President Biden<\/a> is canceling a planned trip he had to colorado so that he can attend National Security<\/a> meetings. And that comes as israel says that there are more hostages than we previously knew about. The number now stands at 199, including some americans. We are covering this from across the world. We begin with erin burnett live in tel aviv, israel. Erin, the Secretary Of State<\/a> is back in israel. There has been just a nonstop questions about what the status of the rafa Border Crossing<\/a> is at this point. Do we have any idea . No. We know its closed. But we dont know. We know there are negotiations ongoing, but pieces of it leak out. The egyptian Foreign Minister<\/a> just over the past hour here, as weve been live has said that theyre making no progress towards opening that border. And that border, of course, you dont just have a lot of people who want to come out, including americans, who have amassed there along that border, the Southern Gaza<\/a> border with egypt, but also all the humanitarian aid waiting to come in is also along that border. And it is still completely closed, and you know, you dont know until you know with a negotiation, but certainly whats coming out of it is not positive, but the context, obviously, phil and poppy, is that the Prime Minister<\/a> netanyahu and Antony Blinken<\/a> are in a meeting right now and blinken has met with leaders in egypt, as well as jordan, and around the region. So, obviously, thats going to be part of the conversation today, but as we have this feeling of imminent and i know weve been saying it for days, but things are changing and things are moving. The status of that border becomes more and more crucial. But as we speak right now, it is closed, phil. You heard explosions earlier, erin. Often, the sound of them being intercepted by the iron dome that is so effective. We have seen debris in peoples backyards, even near tel aviv. Reminding people, the city behind you is a big, bustling metropolis. What is it like this morning there . Reporter i will say, you are right, it is sort of the Heart And Soul<\/a> of the energy of israel here, tel aviv, bustling is the one thing it hasnt been since this happened. It has been really still. Yes, there have been rockets that have been coming in here, you either get the alert if youre in the immediate area or if you hear the explosions, if youre near, but outside the potential area that they determine to be likely for impact. And then, that happens in peoples backyards. And being under the iron dome, at one point, we had 60 rokcket come in. And when that happens, those Rocket Pieces<\/a> have to go somewhere, right . They get intercepted, they get blown up. Then thoey have to come down. They do in forms of debris. And some of them actually break through. We saw Apartment Buildings<\/a> struck. A fire in a building that we subsequently had to seek shelter in because of more rockets coming in. But thats the reality of it. And that shrapnel coming through, those broken rockets, even ones that are intercepted in part can be deadly for people. Thats exactly what youre talking about, in somebodys backyard. It gives you a sense of the randomness and the potency and fear that people feel. I want to bring in sara sidner now, because she is no far north. Shes in haifa, israel. That is where American Families<\/a> have been gathering who are boarding a ship to leave israel. Obviously, an incredibly hard country to get out of. Sara, you and i have spent so much time in ukraine, you have so many land borders possible for people to get out, here you dont. You simply dont. And water is perhaps the main means of egress for many people. And thats what youre seeing. Yeah. It is interesting. There have been Chartered Flight<\/a>s, but the flights are just far and few between. The commercial flights. A lot of them get canceled, but there are very few, very few seats for people. At first, we were seeing tons of people coming in, because the reservists were coming in from all over the world. But going sout is a different thing for families who want to leave. Particularly for americans, theres a large contingent of americans who are here. About 20,000 of them contacted the state department, not necessarily to leave, but to get information and some of them should get information to try and leave israel, because theyre having such a hard time over the past week trying to get out. It just wasnt working. What we have noticed today is this ship, the rhapsody of the seas, which is owned by royal caribbean, and basically the United States<\/a> has asked to use the ship in order to take americans out, weve seen mostly families, to be honest. Its mostly families with small children who are making the decision to leave. This ship holds more than 2,000 passengers, but weve only seen a few hundred americans. And again, it is oftentimes a mother, father, and three children, or two children, who are leaving, often the parents feel very strongly that they want to make sure that their kids are safe, are secure. There is a lot of conflict in leaving, as well, though. The families sort of trying to figure out what the right thing to do is. For many of them making sure their kids are safe and making sure their kids do not feel afraid, as many of them have expressed is the most important thing for these families, who some feel they should stay, because they want to be here to help the country as it goes through this cycle of war. But it is remarkable to see this, having to use a ship. And i want to get out of the way, let you just kind of get an idea of just how big this ship is. I mean, it is a proper cruise ship that has all the accoutrement onboard, and we are seeing, it is about to leave. It has been here since this morning, waiting for people to board, and then at 2 00 is the cutoff. It is now, lets see, it is now 3 00. So you notice, there is no way to get on now. Its no longer available to actually board, because people were supposed to be here by 2 00. They are very close to leaving. They have just taken some of the ropes away and actually, i think it is moving back just a tiny bit. But, yeah, this is the way that people are evacuating israel. Every family we spoke with, by the way, says that they will be back. They are not leaving forever. Erin . Thats a pretty incredible image, a powerful image to see in this time, in this day and age, people boarding a ship like that to try to leave. And i think that many complicated feelings for people in seeing that. As sara says, about a tenhour on that boat to get to cyprus and then from there, americans will be able to find their way back to the United States<\/a>. Sara sidner, thank you very much. And phil, back to you in new york. Thanks, sara. Joining us now is john kirby, the National Security<\/a> Council Coordinator<\/a> for coordinations at the white house. I want to get to the rafa Border Crossing<\/a> and americans attempting to get out of gaza in a minute, but to start, americans have canceled their Domestic Travel<\/a> today in order to stay at the white house for National Security<\/a> meetings. We know that the Prime Minister<\/a> invited him to israel. Is there any connection between those two things . The reason to stay home today, phil, was really to make sure that he could stay focused on whats going on between our israel and hamas. He will have National Security<\/a> meetings today. I dont have any travel to speak to or announce with respect to israel. There was an invitation from the Prime Minister<\/a>, but again, no travel to speak to right now. The Secretary Of State<\/a> is back in israel today, meeting with the Prime Minister<\/a>, among many others. Yesterday, he said the Rafa Crossing<\/a> will be open. Counselor services told people we were speaking to, americans in the area, it may be open. This morning, the egyptian Foreign Minister<\/a> said there has been no progress on the opening. Israel says no arrangements for an opening. I understand this is complicated. Where does it stand right now for americans that are waiting . Right now, its still closed. And obviously, we want to see it open. Secretary blinken has been working on this very, very hard in the region. Youre right, hes back in israel, another chance to consult with our israeli counterparts. We want to see that gate opened. But i just cant tell you with perfect predictability, what thats going to look like. Were hoping, hoping that some time later today, it could be open for a period of hours. But again, we just have to kind of wait and see how this goes. We had had those hopes over the weekend, only to see that those hopes were dashed. So were going to keep working at this very, very hard. Whats driving the bottleneck . Is it one specific country, one specific issue . I think theres a couple of things at play here. Number one, of course, the egyptians, they have to be willing to have that gate open and have a flow of Human Traffic<\/a> through that. And so were in discussions with them about what that could look like and how that could be managed in a way that protects egypts National Security<\/a> interests, as well. They have a right to look after their own population, of course. The other aspect is hamas, phil. I mean, they are literally throwing up roadblocks to prevent people from moving from north dpgaza to South Gaza To G<\/a> towards the rafa gate. Theyre actually trying to encourage people to remain human shields, as they try to tunnel up underneath their homes and headquarter in their schools and hospitals. Hamas has also caused a bit not a bit, caused a significant amount of the problem. There appear to be at least some level of a humanitarian breakthrough yesterday when jake sullivan, the National Security<\/a> adviser, said there had been an agreement to turn water back on into gaza. The israelis confirmed that about an hour or two later. Now the gazan water authority, they denied that water is turned back on. Do you know what the issue is there . Were still looking into those conflicting reports. Obviously, as mr. Sullivan said yesterday, we believe its essential that humanitarian assistance, food, water, medicine, also electrical power remain available to the people of gaza, as much as possible. They are the victims here, too. They didnt ask for this. We want to make sure humanitarian assistance continues to get in. Cant confirm exactly where the situation is with the water, but it is something that also has been high on secretary plblinkes agenda as he travels through the region. We received a statement from the idf that says theyre in the midst of implementing an evacuation of israeli towns and citizens near the northern border with lebanon. Do you view this, is there any indication that this is the start of a hezbollah operation or concerns that the spillover is happening now . Its worrisome, the possibility of having some sort of Northern Front<\/a> open up. As weve said all along, we dont want to see this conflict widen. We certainly dont want to see the idf have to devote resources to a second front. It seems to me like theyre taking the prudent steps that they feel like they need to take for citizens that live up there. I would say as of this morning, we havent seen any firm indications that hezbollah has decided to go all in here and truly open up a second front for the idf, but were watching this closely. Thats one of the reasons why, of course, weve moved Military Assets<\/a> in the region to make it clear to any wouldbe actor that might want to get involved and broaden this conflict that they shouldnt do it. The president had a pretty indepth interview on israel on whats happening last night. Theres one piece of sound i want to play for you. Take a listen. I think that it would be a mistake to for israel to occupy gaza again. But going in and taking out the extremists, the hezbollah is up north, but hamas down south is a necessary requirement. There hasnt been any dispute from israeli officials today in terms of what the president laid out there. But my question is, if you go in and take out hamas, what fills that vacuum . Does the u. S. Have planning . Have you thought through the what happens next part of this process . Were talking to the israelis about as much of this as we can, and the what next and the dayafter kinds of questions. But obviously, theyll have to make these decisions. I wont speak for them, but i dont know that governance in gaza is really what theyre focused on right now. Theyre focused mostly on trying to get at hamas targets. And its difficult to target in there, because its so heavily populated and very urbanized. So, again, i think the israelis are trying to work through this step by step. And i dont want to get ahead of where they are. But the president , i think, was representing real candid, forthright concerns about the challenges that would meet Israeli Forces<\/a>, should they try to have some sort of longterm presence in gaza. Did the issue of leadership in gaza come up with this call with president Mahmoud Abbas<\/a> and the palestinian authority. I wont talk about the specifics of the diplomatic conversations. You know were careful about that. We all want to see the people of gaza protected. We all want see innocent civilians not harmed. Have the ability to leave, have the ability to get food, water, and medicine as appropriate. And the president Still Believes<\/a>, even for all of this conflict, he Still Believes<\/a> in the promise of a twostate solution. That the palestinians deserve their own state, a place where they can call home. Were still affixed to that notion. I know the president , there are no travel plans to announce, but would the president like to travel back to israel . Hes been to israel many, many times. I have no doubt in my mind that hell go again. He knows that this is a critical time for the nation of israel and for the israeli people. He has deep and abiding affection and respect for them, but i dont have any travel to speak to this morning. Appreciate your time, as always. President john kirby, thank you. Thank you, if y phil, for th. More than 2,700 people have been killed in the strikes on gaza so far. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced. Many Heading South<\/a> to try to leave through that southern crossing. The latest images from the ground in gaza, next. All ri. You are looking at live pictures of the rhapsody of the seas, the giant cruise liner that the u. S. Government has brought into haifa, israel. It is just pulling out from port. Our sara sidner has been reporting throughout the morning. Americans have been boarding that ship. It is full, closed, room for no one else on that ship. S it is heading ten hours to cyprus where americans will be able to board commercial flights and make their way back to the United States<\/a>. This comes as here in televiv, coming from haifa, we are seeing some really heavy storms. And im showing to those to you right now for a very specific reason. Because when we have seen these blow through here, and we felt some initial raindrops, so this is probably going to be moving our direction pretty quickly. Youre looking north to have teltel aviv and across the skyline where we are, still some sunshine. Very significant, because the Meteorological Service<\/a> has said that the ferocity of these thunderstorms coming from Northern Israel<\/a> to the south could put both marine avessels and aircraft at risk. They are extremely severe. We have felt the brunt of them ourselves. Its literally like a monsoon. Even the heavyduty tents that we would set up for profit last night, when one of these came through that wasnt even forecast, completely pblew our tents down. It was very severe and absolutely this impacts israels plans on whether its going to do or whether its going to be conducting a Ground Offensive<\/a>. This is significant and there was a forecast for these storms to be rolling even, even to the south of here coming through gaza where there could be an accumulation of up to half an inch. That is a lot of water where we are, which is a complete and utter dust bin along some portions of that border. It comes as this morning, the president of the palestinian authority, Mahmoud Abbas<\/a>, condemned hamas attack on israel and saying that hamas does not represent the palestinian people. His office sending out a statement that says, quote, gaza is now on the brink of a real famine with half a Million People<\/a> displaced and no aid in sight, continuing to focus on the humanitarian part of this, of course. The Palestinian Health<\/a> ministry reporting the number of People Killed<\/a> in gaza is more than 2,700, almost 10,000 wounded. Theres absolutely no way to verify any of these numbers, but we do know that the death toll and the wounded toll is significant, no matter what. Lets go now to cnns salma abdelaziz. So salma, this is a mounting humanitarian crisis. What do you understand from your sources, from what youre seeing is happening on the ground . Reporter so over the weekend, erin, you had about an estimated half a million gazans make their way southward after the Israeli Military<\/a> issued an Evacuation Order<\/a>. But even there, palestinians say they are absolutely not safe. Thats what the u. N. Is saying, as well. There are no safe spaces in gaza. And this is only the beginning of the offensive that Prime Minister<\/a> netanyahu has vowed, after those very brutal attacks, those very barbaric attacks that left 1,400 israelis dead. But the groups say now that families in gaza will be the ones to pay the steepest cost. I want to warn our viewers, the images in this report are graphic. Take a look. Reporter this is what life looks like in what israel has designated the safe zone, where Constant Bombardment<\/a> has reduced homes to rubble and wiped out entire families, these survivors say. I lost all of my relatives, 15 people, this man says. We were not on the front line or anything. We were just sitting at home. What have we done wrong . The u. N. Warns there are no safe places. About half a Million People<\/a> fled here to Southern Gaza<\/a> after an Evacuation Order<\/a> by the Israeli Military<\/a>. But families desperate for refuge are still trapped in the war zone. The dead and injured flooding a Health Care System<\/a> on the brink. More than 2,600 gazans killed so far, just over a quarter of them are children, according to palestinian officials. And a weeklong siege is strangling the enclave, the u. N. Says, amid fears, food, fuel, water, and medical supplies may soon run out. Some 2 Million People<\/a> are crammed into this 140 squaremile territory, now many of them pushed into an even smaller corner of the enclave. About half of the population are children. There are not enough shelters to house the sheer number of civilians, and even those who do find spaces in overwhelmed schools turned refugee centers, it is little comfort to the youngest victims. There is no one to protect us, this little girl says theres no one to come save us. How are we supposed to live . How . Answer me. Prime minister netanyahu has vowed to annihilate hamas, but with the militant group so d deeply embedded, gaza east population, Rights Groups<\/a> fear a bloodbath. What were seeing right now, the direction that israel is going to is going in, they have said that they want to destroy hamas, but their current trajectory is going to destroy gaza. Reporter hamas does not answer to the people of gaza. No elections have been held here since the group seized power in 2007. Still, it is these residents that will pay the price, and with a potential Ground Incursion<\/a> expected, that cost is unfathomable. Now, as you know, erin, there are intense diplomatic efforts underway to open the rafah Border Crossing<\/a> to allow some aid, some humanitarian aid thats piling up in egypt into gaza and to allow foreign nationals out. So far, there seems to be a standoff there. Israel has denied israels government has denied that theres any ceasefire thats about to take place or any humanitarian pause. Egypt continues to insist that aid must go in before foreign nationals come out. For u. S. Officials, this is absolutely a matter of priority, particularly with the Clock Ticking<\/a> and that potential Ground Incursion<\/a> coming any day now. Salma, thank you very much. A powerful report there. And the Secretary Of State<\/a> Antony Blinken<\/a> is here in televiv, where i am standing right now, coming back for what is not announced until last night, had not been expected for a second visit, but is back, and right now meeting with Prime Minister<\/a> Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, who is also going to be meeting with the israeli president , isaac herzog. All of that happening. Christiane amanpour joins me now. And christiane, i want to start by salmas reporting, obviously, about whats going on inside gaza. The context of this Border Crossing<\/a>, could you put it in context . Because obviously its crucial for people getting out and supplies getting in, but how crucial is it for israels decision on a Ground Offensive<\/a>. Does that border need to open for that offensive to happen or is linking those two things tem po poraly a mistake . Its possible the u. S. Is trying to link those two things to try to get out as many civilians as hopossible from harms way. I dont know what blinken is talking to Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> about in that regard, but whats clear and weve heard from the egyptian Foreign Minister<\/a> in a statement that there has been, quote, no progress made on any opening for any reason at the rafah crossing. And as you know, theres only two crossings, one is rafah into egypt, and one up in the north is the eres crossing into egypt where theres no humanitarian or any other movement as egypt bracing for what looks like a Ground Offensive<\/a> there. So what the egyptians are saying, they dont want to open it until israel agrees to allow humanitarian aid in. That hasnt been agreed to yet. And others say that they cant open it, because the bombing around the rafah crossing has made the roads impossible, they cant be used. Its unclear what the exact reasons are. Now, palestinians are saying and other arabs have been saying that many of them do not want to move from Northern Grauz Aza<\/a> to south. A, because they dont want to leave their homes. They dont know how to survive there. Its just as dangerous in the south as in the north, but many are concerned that theyll never be allowed to go back to their homes in gaza city and in Northern Gaza<\/a> after any war is over. Theyre worried about that. There are arab leaders who are concerned that if the aim is to, you know, push palestinians into egypt, first, egypt doesnt want that, because they dont want to have a max influx, they dont want to have potential terrorists coming in, the hamas people, weapons, and all the rest of it. Theyve spent years trying to cleanse their sinai area of militants, and the arabs are very concerned that this becomes another forced exodus that Disallows Palestinians<\/a> to come back into gaza. So, christiane, when you think about, you know, israel isnt even theres no notion of the Israeli Border<\/a> opening at any time, possibly even ever. You have 350,000 troops amassed on that border. And even still today, john kirby said, the National Security<\/a> council, just a few moments ago, that the United States<\/a> Still Believes<\/a> in a twostate solution, a palestine and an israel. Heres what he just said to phil. I wont talk about the specifics of the diplomatic conversations, phil. I think you know were careful about that. We all want to see the people of gaza protected. We all want to see innocent civilians not harmed, have ability to leave, have ability to get access to food, water, and medicine, as appropriate. And the president Still Believes<\/a>, even for all of this conflict, he Still Believes<\/a> in the promise of a twostate solution. That the palestinians deserve their own state, a place where they can call home. Were still affixed to that notion. So, christiane, of course, they believe it. At this point, is that anything close to reality or is it a bit of Wishful Thinking<\/a> or perhaps even naivete . Well, clearly there are people who still, you know, belong to a rapidly dwindling peace camp who would like to think that out of this calamity on all sides, out of this terrible, terrible, terrible calamity, will come some kind of gamechanging event in the future. But, its very hard to see that at the moment. Its almost cavalier, perhaps, to say that the United States<\/a> has had eyes off the palestinian issue for way too long, thinking that theres no return for them, no political return, internally, domestically, no ability to convince the leadership in either israel or the palestinian territories to actually go for that. This is a big problem. The United States<\/a> has not been involved in this Peace Process<\/a> for a long, long time. The Israeli Government<\/a> is nowhere near being in a peace camp, and has been, as you know, fighting against its peace camp and its liberal, you know, democratic population, as it has gone further and further to the extreme right, to the religious, nationalistic extreme right, who would like to see an annexation of the west bank. And a massive increase in settlements. And perhaps even solve, quote unquote, the palestinian issue, by sending the west Bank Palestinians<\/a> into jordan. This is a nonstarter and a red line for countries like jordan and the others. So it requires leadership after this calamity, whether anything like that is going to be poss possible. Any leader who can rise to that equation in this context. Christiane amanpour, thank you so much. Phil . Well, an extensive Tunnel System<\/a> below gaza played a key role in allowing hamas to orchestrate their deadly attack on israel. Well go through the current challenges that those tunnels pose to the idf. Also, youre going to see something extraordinary. After the horror that played out in israel, many israeliamericans quickly jumped at the opportunity to join the fight and defend their homeland. I want to come home safely to my family, i want to see my boys grow up. But you have to put that aside and stop the madness. Nice footwork. Man, youre lucky, watching live sports never used to be this easy. Now you can stream all your games like its nothing. Yes [ cheers ] yeah woho running up and down that field looks tough. Its a pitch. Get way more into what youre into when you stream on the xfinity 10g network. We are live in tel aviv, israel. The Secretary Of State<\/a> Antony Blinken<\/a> has met with Prime Minister<\/a> Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> here today. He is now on his way to meet with the israeli president , isaac herzog. President biden, meantime, has canceled his domestic trip to colorado. He was going to be talking about the economy today, in Lauren Boeberts<\/a> district, actually. Now has canceled that, focusing on National Security<\/a> meetings. The context of this is the Prime Minister<\/a>, Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, who has invited biden to visit israel. Were not aware of any travel plans, but we know that he has canceled the colorado trip for security meetings during the day today. And it comes as the humanitarian aid deliveries accumulate at the egyptian gaza border, that rafah border that were talking about so much here. Thats where thousands are still waiting to escape from the gaza side. That includes hundreds of Palestinian Americans<\/a> and, by the way, even some americans, american doctors who are in there, who are trying to get out as well. And theres complete confusion over whether that border will open at all, never mind when that border will open. Meantime, the Government Media Office<\/a> of hamas, and i want to be very important to stress the source here, has put out a picture. This picture, they say Swb A Mass Grave<\/a> where dozens of unidentified bodies have been buried. And phil and poppy, the context here is that theyre saying their Hospital Freezers<\/a> are full because of strikes and the number of dead and theyre unable to store them anywhere. And of course with the loss of power, unable to care for them in the right way. And now are starting to begin these mass graves. Again, thats from the hamas Government Media Office<\/a>. But regardless of the source, the humanitarian tragedy there, of course, rises by the moment, poppy. Thats right. So striking, erin. First time ive seen that image. I think the same for a lot of our viewers. Well get back to you very seen, erin. Thank you very much. Lets also talk about what israel is facing in gaza, should there be a Ground Incursion<\/a>. You have a vast labyrinth of tunnels underneath gaza. The idf says Hamas Terrorists<\/a> are hiding in a subterranean network under houses and Apartment Buildings<\/a>. Hamas in 2021 claims to have built over 300 miles worth of these tunnels. If thats true, it would be a little less than half the length of the new york city subway system. Just think about that. How does this underground network complicate israels offensive and efforts to rescue those hostages . With us at the wall, john miller. Israel had claimed, john, a couple of years ago, 2021, to have destroyed a lot. They said 62 miles of this Tunnel Network<\/a>. Even with that, what are they facing on the ground here . Well, the Tunnel Network<\/a> on a good day, when youre not at war, has been essential to hamas. Its the way they move fighters around. Its the way they move weapons around. Its the way they avoid what is pervasive israeli surveillance in terms of signals, satellites, cameras. So its very important to them. You know, we talked about this earlier, with general huertling but these are secret entrances in buildings. They have entrances off the street. They go down hundreds of feet underground, and they provide not just shade from surveillance, but at a difficult time like now from areal bombing and things that allow hamas to stay operational, while you see the damage and the carnage aboveground. We were talking about this in the break. How on earth do you go in there if there are civilian hostages down there, and terrorists down there, how do Israeli Forces<\/a> go in there, get out the hostages, kill the terrorists, most effectively . Well, this is where our intelligence gap is, which is probably a good thing. We dont know, as we stand here, how much the israelis know about the mapping of the tunnels that were rebuilt, the mapping of the new tunnels, where hostages were being held, that their level of detail is. But at a base level, even if theyre operating in the dark, coming into the tunnels from multiple directions and doing a Hostage Rervegt<\/a> is always going to be high risk, but its something that the israelis in particular have a lot of experience with. Lets also talk about the two key hamas leaders. Mohammad al daif and yaya sinwar. Yaya sinwar is the leader on the ground. There are other hamas leaders that operate out of doha. We encountered one of them last week when he put out the worldwide threat and the daytoday kind of politics of it. But hes the man on the ground in gaza whos the head of the political wing. Hes been around a long time, and off the radar for some of it. He spent 23 years in an israeli prison, but he is known as a shrewd operator, calm under pressure, soft spokesman, and somebody who has been very good at creating alliances and Communication Channels<\/a> with egypt, which borders gaza, and has that critical crossing, as well as iran that has become obviously a major factor in supplying missiles. But that takes us to mohamed el deif. El deif is his alias, it means the guest, because he never sleeps in the same place two night s in a row. He usually sleeps in places that are in those tunnels or moving from house to house. He has been with hamas, born in 1965, grew up in a refugee camp in Southern Gaza<\/a>. Oddly, in college, his main interest was in drama, but as he got into the interfada, spent time in israeli prison, came back, in the 90s He Quickly Rose<\/a> through the ranks. But when you look at him, think back to that time. The bombings of the buses, the bombings of the restaurants crowded with tourists and israelis. This is the period where he made his mark, targeted by israel, his locations were attacked. He lost two children, he lost an arm, he lost a leg, but he is a committed warrior. He lost an arm and a leg and is still moving every night. As half of his hearing. But if you want to know who is the tactical mastermind between what weve seen in the last week, that would be el deif. John, thank you. Really illuminating. Appreciate it. Phil . Well, Israeli Americans<\/a> are answering the call as israel is seeking about 300,000 reservists from Around The World<\/a> zwto join the fight against hamas, these american israelis say after Seeing Hundreds<\/a> of hamas gunmen storm into israel killing people and abducting others, they knew they had to drop everything and defend their country. Cnns Stephanie Elam<\/a> is live in los angeles with more. Stephanie, its been a remarkable thing to watch over the course of the last deight days. What did you find . Reporter phil, in just a couple of days, these people have dropped their lives. Youre talking about accountants, therapists, Real Estate Agents<\/a> and just knew that they needed to get back to israel. And that is where this Chartered Flight<\/a> came in to help get them there. Ive done my crying and i cant even begin to process it. Reporter after seeing the first images from the attack on the nova Music Festival<\/a> i want to go and i almost feel like i need to go. Reporter dorel felt he had only one option. Get to israel. I was just in shock and it didnt make things to me the things i was seeing. Reporter a los angeles native, he was born to israeli parent who is moved to the u. S. 35 years ago. I know where i came from, im american, im israeli. Reporter after college, the 28yearold joined the Israel Defense<\/a> forces. He says two of his friends from his time in the idf were killed in the hamas attack. I started looking at flights. Reporter but most air carriers had halted service to israel. I think this is nothing short of a miracle. Reporter thats where jordan freed stepped in. I got a Distress Phone Call<\/a> from a soldier who needed to get back. I think i naively accepted the challenge and i started making phone calls. Reporter in less than a week, the newly formed Nonprofit Israel Friends<\/a> raised private funds and organized this Chartered Flight<\/a> to carry 150 people from a handful of nations to tel aviv, along with tons of humanitarian aid. These were civilians a week ago, but are now reservists who have call up orders to get back to their units. I know none of them, they dont know each other. Reporter and yet despite the Early Morning<\/a> hour, theres a Palpable Energy<\/a> of camaraderie. Im volunteering there to see whatever they need. Left everything behind, the wife and just loaded up on the flight. I want to come home safely to my family. I want to see my boys grow up. But you have to put that aside and stop the madness thats happening. Reporter maeri is also leaving family behind. As a mom, how are you feeling right now . Im feeling proud. Very, very proud that he made such a big decision. Report i cant lie to you, my stomach is turning, but im so proud of him. What are you most afraid of . Just the outcome. I just fear the unknown at the moment. Reporter but this moment is for final goodbyes, as brave faces give way to tears. Whats your overwhelming thought right now . Were going to fight for our country, so were ready and its amazing that everyones ready and, you know, just doing my part. Reporter one final embrace they pray wont be their last. And maeri did tell me that october 7th will also be a loss for the israeli people. Theres no winning when he goes back to fight. He knows that. But he still wanted to be there. I have been in touch with him, phil and poppy, and i can tell you that he has made to israel and that he has reported to base. Hes been a paratrooper, he was a commander when he served in idf before and he is back there, because he wanted to be with his soldiers and he wanted to fight for his country. He said, i love america, but i love israel, as well. What a story. Stephanie elam, thank you. All right, take a look. Live pictures out of capitol hill, where the house still has no speaker this monday morning. Our abby phillip live in studio to help us figure out if the chaos is ending. Abbys here, next. A number of House Republicans<\/a> are in talks to block ohio congressman jim jordans path to the speakership yet he is still pushing for a floor vote tomorrow. Take a listen to what republican had to say about bullying gop holdouts into supporting jordan. What i would really recommend to jordans allies, too, is a lot of them have now did this High Pressure<\/a> campaign, theyre going to whip up twitter against the people who are against jordan. That is the dumbest way to support jordan, and im supporting jordan. The dumbest thing you can do is to continue pissing off those people and entrench them. Lets bring in abby phillip, she is the aichker of cnn news night. Im laughing at this because chaos. Because i dont know how i feel like i think you and poppy both appreciate this, we always kind of know how it is going to end, its a matter of how much pain anyone hag to go through to get to the end game. No one seems to know what the end game is. The reality is that jim jordan is much farther away from the speakership than even Kevin Mccarthy<\/a> was earlier this year when it took him 15 rounds to get those last few votes. How does this end . I dont know. I mean, ive talked to a lot of the more moderate republicans, people like dan crenshaw in that clip, who are so angry. They are so angry, they do not want to reward the people who put them in this mess. Some of them have said they will never vote for a jim jordan, but there are actually more of them than there were of the matt gaetz holdouts. So under those circumstances it is really not clear to me where this goes. I do think, though, there will be a vote of some kind and then it will be the same thing that we saw last week, just like Steve Scalise<\/a> had to have a moment to realize do i have the votes, do i not . A similar thing will happen with jim jordan and then perhaps another name will emerge that we are not talking about just yet. One of the defenses of this mess from matt gaetz over the weekend in his interview with our colleague Michael Smerconish<\/a> was, well, because of this legislation that was Pass Add Handful<\/a> of years ago israel has this funding, the 3. 8 billion a year, its going to continue, we dont have to reauthorize this. That is a defense to say its okay and he said were still having meetings and still getting things done. The government is going to run out of funding in four weeks. There are agenda items and thats why youre hearing some republicans and democrats saying, we need a plan b in case the republicans cant get their act together. They are talking about empowering the speaker pro tem Patrick Mchenry<\/a> so that they can address things that just have a process for legislative business. Now, one of the agenda items that democrats are interested in and moderates are interested in is ukraine aid. I was just going to say that does not continue each year. That does not continue each year. That needs to be authorized. That might be why this sort of temporary solution wont happen because the hardliners dont want to authorize ukraine aid. They dont want to make it possible for Something Like<\/a> that to happen. We are in a true stalemate here in congress and its going to be a question of are the adults in the room going to step up and are they going to have enough power and clout to move a Process Forward<\/a> that empowers where honestly the vast majority of the house in both parties are. We are talking about a couple dozen people in the Republican Party<\/a> who are stopping all business and i think that thats we will see how tenable that is as we go toward especially this Government Funding<\/a> deadline in midnovember. Switching topics because i think this all actually plays into whats happening in the house to some degree, whats happening in israel. Obviously we are talking about funding for israel as they look towards a counteroffensive there. Theres a new cnn poll out that says that 96 of americans have either a lot of or some sympathy for the israeli people, 67 of americans have a lot or some sympathy for the palestinian people. I think politically speaking why this sticks out to me is because those numbers are going to shift when an offensive begins, our a counteroffensive begins. I think thats part of why youve seen President Biden<\/a> be so forward leaning on this, despite decades of support for israel. What stands out to you with those numbers . Well, look, i mean, i think its not a surprise that the numbers in support of israel are as high as they are, i think in both parties the vast majority when it comes to politics mass majority of americans support israel and its right to exist. The question becomes what happens when the civilian casualties go up, when the bombs start falling, and i also think that this is going to be a question of where political leaders start to come into play. You have people like ron desantis basically squashing the distinction between Hamas Terrorists<\/a> and palestinian people, civilians. That is not helpful in this environment because just as a factual matter there are millions of people in palestine who have nothing to do with the bombs falling in israel or that Terrorist Attack<\/a> and there is a real humanitarian crisis thats unfolding there and that the world is going to be dealing with, not just the United States<\/a>. So we will see how this goes. I mean, i think that at the end of the day, you know, how this is talked about by leaders in this country and over there is going to have a huge determination on where Public Opinion<\/a> shifts. Desantis trying to explain why america shouldnt take any palestinian refugees, saying they are all antisemitic. Words matter. Its sad, honestly. Abby, thank you. I cant wait to watch you tonight, the launch of your show, we appreciate it. Cnn news night with abby nil lip, tonight at 10 00 p. M. Eastern. We will be there. Saturday night live made its long awaited return this weekend so did host and former cast member pete davidson. Davidson lost his father in the 9 11 attack and used his opening monologue to address victims of the ongoing war in israel. This week we saw the horrible images and stories from israel and gaza. And i know what youre thinking, who better to comment on it than pete davidson. Well, in a lot of ways i am a good person to talk about it because when i was seven years old my dad was killed in a Terrorist Attack<\/a>. So i know something about what thats like. I saw so many terrible pictures this week of children suffering, israeli children and palestinian children, and it took me back to a really horrible, horrible place. You know, no one in this world deserves to suffer like that, you know, especially not kids. I dont understand it, i really dont and i never will, but sometimes comedy is really the only way forward through tragedy. A hearing will start in just over an hour on special counsel jack smiths request to place a gag order on the former president in the federal election subversion case. That gag order would restrict what former President Trump<\/a> could say about the case after he verbally attacked multiple people, including the judge. Trumps lawyers have asked the judge to reject the request. One of the countrys largest Pharmacy Chains<\/a> has filed for bankruptcy this morning, that is rite aid. That decision not a total surprise. The company faced debt. Rite aid is accused of filling unlawful opioid prescriptions for its customers. Wall green, cvs, other Farmly Chains<\/a> settled similar lawsuits over the past years. A scary moment for the buffalo bills. Running back Damian Harris<\/a> going down after a short run and laying on the ground for several minutes. Harris was taken to the hospital for further testing. Players for both teams sug nld for doctors after he was ta tackled. The bills said his neck was injured. Bills confirm he does have movement in his arms and legs, a","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia800505.us.archive.org\/25\/items\/CNNW_20231016_120000_CNN_This_Morning\/CNNW_20231016_120000_CNN_This_Morning.thumbs\/CNNW_20231016_120000_CNN_This_Morning_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240703T12:35:10+00:00"}