Transcripts For CNNW Anderson 20240703 : vimarsana.com

CNNW Anderson July 3, 2024

Welcome to our continuing coverage of israel at war. Im Anderson Cooper in tel aviv tonight. Information we have just received shows israeli tanks and personal near the border with gaza. The idf also announced they would increase airstrikes on the spokesman said the military is now focused on the next stage. And then there is this. Cnns team on the ground here saw dozens of tanks and Armored Personnel Carriers and even bulldozers on the border with gaza, the sort of equipment one would expect to see during a possible ground operation. This is just one of several areas where weve seen scenes like this. Altogether, weve seen hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles. President biden was asked today whether he was encouraging israelis to delay a possible invasion. His only response was to say quote, im talking to the israelis. End quote. These comments come after shipment of aid carrying food, water and medical supplies was finally allowed to cross into Southern Gaza from egypt. No fuel was allowed. Israel says hamas couldve used fuel in its war. The head of the World Health Organization said the aid is not nearly enough and those hospitals are already at the breaking point. Were going to have more on all this plus the president s phone call today with the american hostages released by hamas, but first we want to get the latest from the ground. Nick robertson is in israel for us tonight. Reporter there is an uptick in air strikes and artillery strikes on gaza this evening and we saw it in the afternoon, as well from the northern end of gaza and that certainly does fit was what the idf was saying, that they are going to have more strikes, and that is to protect troops on the ground, but it gives no indication of when an incursion might come. We spent the day going along the eastern border of gaza trying to compare and contrast what was seen along that border over the past number of days or so. That sort of amount of energy and the level of troops rushing to the border in the groupings of tanks we have seen earlier in the week where they were repairing the tracks on the side of the road, you got the sense of a surge of momentum toward that border with gaza. We are not seeing that, partly because some units may have moved forward closer to gaza and we cant get there because security is tighter in that militarized border zone region, so we dont have access, or perhaps some of them have gone back to base. There are still large areas where we are seeing Armored Personnel Carriers and tanks lined up in fields are some of the military bases a little bit deeper inside of israel. They dont have trips with them yet. They dont look like theyre ready to go into the fight but it does indicate the depth of reserves of Military Fighting Equipment that israel may need if and when an incursion gets underway, but i think what im trying to say here, anderson, is that it is very hard to make an assessment about the readiness of israeli troops close to the border, but in terms of airstrikes, yes, we can hear them. There are flashes behind us this evening. You can hear the detonations and explosions in northern gaza. You had heard a couple nights ago, machinegun fire, automatic weapon fire. Are you still hearing that . We are getting it occasionally, and i think its indicative and instructive of the fact that just behind us, you know, in the very controlled Military Zone that runs up to the border, a mile or so behind us here, that there are a lot of troops in those positions there. I dont think that has changed. We certainly have not seen troops coming away from the border region from close to the fence with gaza, so they are there, and redo the from the idf that there have been points where theyve seen somebody trying to set up to fire an antitank rocket at units that are close to the border, and they have engaged them in a firefight to neutralize that threat, so i think that situation persists, and it just depends where those points of contact along the line happen. We havent heard any today. That area over there for we were seen the tank fire a couple of nights ago, its quiet, but again, we have seen a couple of israeli rockets fired into that area. It was hard to tell if they were coming from a helicopter or what they were coming from, but they literally flew very close over our heads, wish, a real zoom onto targets there so i think the idea that just across the fence, there is an active threat from hamas that is maybe trying to take the fight to the waiting troops, it seems that may be the case. Nick robertson, appreciate it. Joining us right now is a lieutenant colonel. Thanks for being with us. In terms of where things stand now, who makes the decision of when to actually move forward to, as the idf has called it, the next phase in this operation . Good night. Thank you for having me, and that is mostly a military decision, but there is always close coordination between the higher military and our or cabinet, and since any such decision would be a major decision, i can imagine they would coordinate at the highest levels. Its important to keep in mind that we have said that our senior commanders have been visiting, touring the troops, speaking with the forces, preparing and approving plans, et cetera, and the general spirit is one of combat readiness, and a very clear resolve and what needs to be done. The release of two american hostages last night, does that impact the timing, the Decision Making on the Ground Incursion . One would assume that hamas hope so, and they issued another dose of fakeness or misinformation today about some attempt, and that it was not approved by israel, which is just nonsense, so one could they said they were prepared to release two more hostages. Yes, but that was discredited immediately by the Prime Ministers office, so i think that could be laid to rest. Of course hamas understand they dont have to be wizards of intelligence to understand whats coming. They see the troops. They hear the statements and therefore, i think they are bracing for impact, and impact that will come, and the troops on the ground have clear assignments, clear visions. We have a mission and a commitment to get all of our israelis back home, and we have an endgame to dismantle hamas and make sure that the gaza strip no longer Harbor Terrorists that threaten israeli civilians. I saw a slightly higher number of hostages believed to be held. Can you give me what you believe is the current number . Because it was 203 than two or released, but now i see a number that may be higher. Correct. The updated number after the return of the two women is 210. The work is ongoing to identify and put the pieces of the puzzle together, and i think that is still a dynamic number and we will see that change, as well, and additional families in israel will be notified. I assume an assessment, it is a work in progress. The work to identify the remains of israelis is very difficult. We are using the most advanced technology we have available and still, pathologists are really scrambling and at a loss because some of the corpses are in such a horrific state that it is virtually impossible to identify, so it is very challenging in the numbers are dynamic, but the commitment is clear to bring them back home. The International Community of the red cross has asked for not only access to hostages, but proof of life. They have not been given that. How do you determine the number . From everything i understand, it is not only hamas. Islamic jihad claimed early on that they had some 30 people they had taken hostage. There may be armed groups, sort of mafia groups or individuals that have crossed over the border and taken hostages of their own. Weve seen that in the past. Yes, and this unprecedented situation for us, to have so many of our civilians and military at the hands of an enemy, it is very complex, and all of what you said is precise. What we are doing is focusing all of our intelligence assets in order to understand who is holding him, and where they are being held and try to put that puzzle or create some clarity in that puzzle. It is very complex and a challenge that i think our Intelligence Institutions and our terry have never faced, but it is a task that we must succeed in, and we will use all the tools available military intelligence, civilian, whatever technologies we can and of course, Combat Boots On The Ground and of course, diplomacy. Whatever works will work. In the end, the game here is to get everybody home. I have just been told were getting some word from the idf about an operation by hamas on the west bank. What you know about that . Yes. If you recall, there was some significant fighting in jenin a few months ago, significant fighting for a few days and during that operation we discovered terrorist infrastructure, actually, a Tunnel System inside a mosque. What we did today was to strike that Tunnel System that was hidden under a mosque, because we had new and life intelligence that suggested there was an imminent attack coming from a joint hamas and Islamic Jihad squad that was preparing itself from that mosque. I appreciate your time, thank you. With me now is cnn military analyst james spider marks. We were hearing from that Military General from the idf talking about the political decision of when to roll in. We know that the israeli troops are stationed all over the zone right here with infantry, tanks, altered kinds of Military Equipment is you have been describing here. When that decision comes in, what position are these forces in now in terms of that decision . All of these forces are prepared to go on order. Are basically, the minute they say yes, they are ready . Most of these strips have been sleeping on or next to their vehicles for the last week. They have been doing this final preparations. They are prepared to go. This is a political decision. The Military Commander on the ground has to report back and say yes, i have x number of troops, our Target Folders are complete. We know what we are doing. Our rehearsals are complete. We are prepared to go and by the way, i recommend we go now. That Military Commander can say we are ready to go, but ultimately it is a political decision thats going to be made. But the forces are just waiting for the go. Correct. And these are not the reservists. These are the activeduty folks. They are going to be doing some incredible heavy lifting, initially. One other thing we heard from conricas right there, an incredible amount of planning right here. There in this tunnel complex and constantly being moved. Nobody really knows, and to underline this is very difficult because the idf missed the they did not get the intelligence preparation of this assault back on the seventh, so you look at the intelligence that helps build this and you realize as Colonel Conricas indicated, this is something the idf is not done in this level of detail before. This is incredibly difficult work. Theyve gotten together nut numbers. Theyve talked to Family Members and know who is missing, so this is probably a good estimate. Theyve spoken to other embassies and this is probably a good number based on their individuals who have been held hostage, as well. Where they are located is only going to be determined once you cross over into gaza. Spider, thank you very much for all of this. Up next, the parents of one of the u. S. Hostages joins anderson on whether they are Hearing Anything from the u. S. After the release of the two women, plus the king of jordan says there is no military solution to this crisis. Hear what he says will solve it, and new information on a briefing President Biden just received. This is cnn special live coverage. Administration has been working hard to get the hostages out of gaza, and also to be able to get all of them out. Officials have confirmed to cnn that they expect and believe that there are still americans held hostage by hamas. When asked how many, officials have characterized that only as a handful, and it is a complicated endeavor for multiple reasons because it is an active war zone and also because of the group they are dealing with, which is hamas. There are subgroups. They sometimes hold people in different areas, so it is still unclear where the hostages are, exactly, and in what condition theyre in, but it is still clearly a priority for this administration. Just yesterday, President Biden held a call with Prime Minister netanyahu and in that call, they also discussed the ongoing effort to get hostages released that are being held by comp hamas. What is the white house doing about Palestinian Americans at the southern Border Crossing with egypt, The Rafah Crossing, who have been waiting for really two weeks or more than two weeks, but they are still there. Theyre not being allowed to cross into egypt. Do we know what the holdup is . This is a topic of discussion with u. S. Officials and their counterparts overseas. It is something that is come up as well for Secretary Of State antony blinken, who was involved in this highstakes Shuttle Diplomacy across the region over the last several days, and an internal government memo i reviewed earlier this week showed that the u. S. Embassy in cairo is tracking. There are more than 100 u. S. Citizens they know of in gaza, and there are Family Members or associated Family Members who are trying to get out, but it is a complicated effort, and one that is complicated by The Rafah Crossing and whether they can cross, whether they are permitted to by egypt or by hamas, so it is still something the administration is working on, something that the president and a Statement Today went on to mention again, which is that his administration was working around the clock to try to get those Palestinian Americans out of gaza, but there is no clear end in sight on that front, anderson. All right, priscilla alvarez, thank you. Joining me now is john poland and Rachel Goldberg whose son, hirsch, was taken hostage at the Music Festival the day that hamas attack. Two hostages were released last night, both americans. Im wondering, when you learned of that, what were your thoughts . First of all, im really happy for them, those hostages, their loved ones. They got the outcome we are now hoping that the other 201ish hostages get. They were both women. They were people who lived full time in the United States and were here to visit. I am not surprised that they are the first two. I just hope there are many more to follow, including our son, who is 15 days in, having his arm blown off and we hope, getting antibiotics and medical treatment. John and rachel, hirsch has a severe wound, as john was saying, part of his left arm was either shot or blown off. His hand is gone. Do you feel there has been enough attention on those who are being held hostage who have severe lifethreatening medical conditions . There are a number of people that we know about. Well, clearly there is not enough attention. First of all, theres no information. You know, we know about this, but a lot of people dont know what has happened to their loved ones, and i think that we have been rightfully worried about the babies and the children and the grandparents who are there, and also, there are many wounded people there, grievously wounded. There is a teenage girl believed to be kidnapped to is fed with a feeding tube and in a wheelchair. There are others with serious medical conditions. The red cross, which has called for all the hostages to be released, which hamas and other groups have the power to do for hostages with severe, life threatening injuries to be at least prioritized in some way, is there any indication that might that there is thought being given to that . Lets not even talk about what would drive anybody to do this and yes, our son is there in his condition. I see the pictures you referred to of the young woman in a wheelchair who was taken. Lets not even go to what kind of people do this. What i would say is, until there are people around the world, like youre talking about Foreign Ministers of every country, until there holding their hands altogether and shouting for help, for medical treatment, the no, not enough is being done. Not enough attention is being paid to this. There are hostages from Something Like 30 countries. I keep saying, this is not it is realpalestinian issue. This is not an issue of conflict. This is people. A global issue. People from 30 countries held hostage not getting the treatments they need and im not hearing nearly enough noise in the world to support what these people should be getting. Rachel, is there Anything Else you want people to know . I just think that time is running out, not just for hirsch, but i think time is running out for the remaining 200 people who are still there. I think that it is such a Vulnerable Community of people for you have elderly people and you have children and you have babies, and many injured, wounded people. I just think we dont have time , like it has been two weeks. Now is the time for the courageous people who are putting in tireless efforts, you know, behind the scenes, however they are doing it, keep going. Lets get these people out. John, Any

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