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CNN International: Israeli Airstrike Hits Central Beirut For First Time Since 2006 War, Nine Reported Killed; Israel's U.N. Envoy: Response To Iranian Attack "Will Be Soon"; Biden Leaves Door Open To Potential Israeli Strike On Iran's Oil Reserves. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired October 03, 2024 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
JESSICA DEAN, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, and welcome to our viewers from around the world. I'm Jessica Dean in New York, and I want to get to our breaking news this hour.
Israeli jets are carrying out new airstrikes in southern Beirut, and this time, going after the intelligence headquarters of Hezbollah. Thick black smoke, you see it, filling the skies over the city after a series of large blasts.
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This comes after a terrifying night for civilians in Beirut, the very heart of the city hit for the first time since 2006. Lebanon's Health Ministry saying nine people were killed. More Lebanese are fleeing the country to escape the fighting. Israel has now brought in evacuation orders in southern Lebanon, to include 76 villages, in a sign that the ground war may very well escalate. And amid all of this, Israel also weighing a response to Iran's unprecedented missile strikes this week. It says the retaliation will, quote, "be very strong and come soon".
Just a short time ago, U.S. President Joe Biden telling reporters that nothing is going to happen today. He left the door open to the possibility of Israeli strikes on Iran's oil facilities, but has said nuclear sites should be off limits.
Let's bring in CNN's Nic Robertson, who is in Tel Aviv, and Jomana Karadsheh, who is in Beirut.
Jomana, let's start first with you. You are there in Beirut, a city that has not been struck like this since 2006. Describe to us what you're seeing.
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, these latest airstrikes, about four hours ago, we heard those strikes, we felt those strikes, and then we could see smoke rising from the southern suburbs of Beirut, at least three blasts that our team here heard. And we've heard since from the Israeli military, saying that they struck what they say is the intelligence headquarters for Hezbollah. Now, we've heard from the Hezbollah press office saying that their offices were hit. It's unclear right now if there were casualties. It's worth pointing out that this happened during the day. It happened with no prior warning. We've seen the IDF, in certain instances, put out these warnings through its Arabic language spokesperson, with posts on X, telling people to evacuate certain areas in the southern suburbs before striking.
Now, this area is, or was, one of the most populated areas in the country. It was the seat of power of Hezbollah. That is where the Israelis killed Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and other top commanders, but it is also home to hundreds of thousands of people. We have seen a mass exodus from the southern suburbs in recent days, as these airstrikes have intensified, but there are still civilians there. There are still people who don't want to leave their homes because there aren't enough government shelters, because they don't know what is going to happen to them if they leave their homes. There are still so many people out on the streets. And happening during the day, we've seen people going back to their homes to try and get their belongings before leaving again.
So, we'll have to wait and see if there are casualties in those large strikes that we saw here a few hours ago. Jessica.
DEAN: All right. Jomana, stay with us.
I want to go to Nic Robertson, who is in Tel Aviv, and get his perspective from what's going on, on the ground there in Israel, and also, Nic, what you're hearing from the Israeli side.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah. We're getting indications from the Israeli side through their Arabic spokesman that they are sending very clear messages to Hezbollah about bringing in additional weapons from Lebanon, and they're talking about the Masnaa crossing. They say that they hit a truck that they said, that the IDF said was carrying weapons and sophisticated systems from Iran through Syria, across that Masnaa civilian crossing. This is how the IDF describes it from Syria into Lebanon, and they say that they hit a truck a few days ago and that they could see the secondary explosions.
But, they seem to be more explicit in this message, and they say Hezbollah understands we will not allow it to bring in additional equipment, military material from outside, and bring it to the south of Lebanon.
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So, it does seem that the IDF is also making it clear that this Masnaa crossing from -- that they describe as a civilian crossing from Syria into Lebanon could potentially become a target, in additional to the -- in addition to the intelligence headquarters that they say that they targeted in Beirut today.
DEAN: And Nic, I also want to ask you, as all of this is happening, of course, the Israelis are weighing how they want to retaliate against Iran for the strike a couple of days ago. What are you hearing about that?
ROBERTSON: There is very, very little that's being said publicly here other than Israel, through its ambassador to the UN, talking about a painful response for Iran through the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister, who both said Israel can reach out to its enemies, and anyone that targets the people of Israel, we will target them back. So, the public statements are very clear. There is going to be a response. But, what isn't clear is a timeline, and that you would expect the military not to communicate a timeline on when that would be.
But, I think of huge interest to the region right now is precisely what Israel will target, and there are no public statements about that at all. Will it run the gamut from hitting oil refineries facilities on the coast of Iran, an economic punishment? But, for the United States, there -- that in the -- this current sort of election cycle, barely a month from the election, could trigger a rise in the price of oil that would not be welcomed in the United States. President Biden making it very unclear, he would not either welcome, and he doesn't want to see any of Iran's nuclear enrichment sites targeted, because there is fear that that could bring a massive escalation.
And I think when you consider the targets and you consider the timing, you then have to consider what sort of munitions may be used in a mission like this, and I think the munitions that Israel would choose to use will also send a very clear signal of deterrence, and that's what this will be about. It will be about deterrence, a cease and desist, something that is decisive that they would believe Iran would understand and not to then restrike Israel and continue this rapidly escalating escalation.
DEAN: All right. Nic, stand by.
I want to go back to Jomana for a moment. And Jomana, I understand you were able to walk through the streets of Beirut, and you can show us a little bit about what it really looks like to be on the ground there right now.
KARADSHEH: Well, Jessica, as you mentioned earlier, last night was the first time since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war that we've seen the heart of Beirut hit by a strike. It was a long and terrifying night for the people of Beirut. Yes, we have seen these airstrikes continuing now for days, but they've been really focused on the southern suburbs. So, when the heart of Beirut in the middle of the night was hit, this really got so many people here very worried about this war expanding beyond the southern suburbs.
So, we went out to the streets of Beirut and spoke to people about this. Take a listen.
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KARADSHEH: We're in the heart of Beirut just hours after a rare Israeli strike, and the fear and anxiety here is palpable. It's the first time an Israeli strike hits the center of the city since all-out war between Lebanon and Israel in 2006, and even then, strikes like this were rare. This is the second time this week that we've seen attacks outside the southern suburbs, Hezbollah's seat of power. The target appears to have been a Hezbollah-affiliated house authority office in a residential area, and several medics were killed.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): This happened in the middle of the city, in the middle of the night with no prior warning, a terrifying development for the people of Beirut. Even here, outside the American University, in this cultural and commercial neighborhood, people say they no longer feel safe.
HADEEL, RESIDENT OF BEIRUT: They're getting scarier, because it feels like, by the day, things are escalating, and we don't really know what area is safe anymore. I feel like, in Gaza, it started the same way, and then it escalated.
KARADSHEH: Yeah.
HADEEL: Yeah. So, you always worry, like, will it keep on going? Will the West speak out, or are we just another country in the Middle East?
AREEJ, RESIDENT OF BEIRUT: This is the thing like the unknown. We don't know how long this is going to stay. This war, how long is it going to extend? Is it going to be just limited to the south, or is it going to be all over Lebanon?
MAHDI, RESIDENT OF BEIRUT: We are now literally paralyzed. We cannot do anything. We have to stay at home. And everything is deteriorating. Our futures are literally -- we have a blank idea about our futures. We don't know what will happen next.
KARADSHEH: The Lebanese have seen it all, conflict and crises, and many fear this is the beginning of a long war.
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KARADSHEH: And Jessica, the Israeli military has not said what the target of that strike was in central Beirut. And you heard it from people there. They are absolutely terrified. They really feel that they are no longer safe, no matter where they are in the city, as they are seeing these airstrikes go beyond the southern suburbs. I mean, as I'm speaking to you, we can still hear the Israeli drones buzzing overhead, and this is something that the residents of Beirut have been hearing all day today, an indication, perhaps, that there are going to be more strikes in the coming hours.
DEAN: All right. Jomana and Nic, our thanks to both of you for that excellent reporting. Thank you so much.
I want to get some more perspective now from former CIA Officer Bob Baer. He is the author of "The Perfect Kill: 21 Laws for Assassins". Bob, thanks so much for being on with us today.
ROBERT BAER, FORMER CIA OFFICER: Of course. DEAN: I just kind of want to zoom out, actually, first, and I know you
were stationed in the Middle East for years. You have a lot of experience in that region. Give us some context about where we are today and how this conflict may be different than previous ones we've seen in that region.
BAER: Well, I was in and around Beirut in 1982 when the Israelis invaded. I've lived in West Beirut. And what I can tell you, if Israel's intent is to get rid of Hezbollah, it's going to have to put troops all over Beirut, simply because Hezbollah is everywhere. When I lived in, this wasn't that long ago, I live in Beirut, there was a Hezbollah militia people living in the ground floor. They were working a shawarma stand, and they'd go down and fight. So, Israel has waded into a conflict, which I'm sure it doesn't -- itself doesn't know that it can win.
And I think what scares people in Beirut right now is that in order to win, that Netanyahu is going to have to turn Beirut into Gaza. I know that sounds dire. But, I do know the terrain, and I do know what they're up against. They're just going to have to beat Hezbollah and destroy it. They're going to have to move well into Lebanon and with more than two divisions.
DEAN: And the Israelis have said that they struck Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters in Beirut in this recent strike. How significant is that? What does that mean?
BAER: I don't think it doesn't matter at this point. It's just a structure they've hit. Hezbollah, at this point, understands what's happening, and it's dispersed, dispersed to houses. They have a lot of weapons and explosives, and they've been through this before. They had an 18-year war with Israel, and they know what they're doing. Their leadership was decapitated. They're badly wounded. They can't coordinate. But, at the same time, a guerrilla movement like this is more dangerous.
DEAN: Because in that moment, now that they've dispersed, it sounds like what you're saying is, in order to defeat them, if you're Israel, you're now going to have to go in in such a large way and almost go door-to-door to try to find all of these people and find where the weapons may be.
BAER: It's going to be urban warfare. The Israelis have the choice. They can send ground troops in. Tanks won't do any good in Beirut. They're going to send ground troops in. They'll take heavy casualties, or they're simply going to have to use the best intelligence they have, which is very good, to take them out, which means more strikes in Beirut. And they're also -- we're talking about the Masnaa crossing. They're going to have to close that entirely. That's the road that goes to Damascus, simply to keep, because there -- don't forget, Hezbollah is in Syria as well, and they have to keep them from coming back in Lebanon. That's a very tough road. It's windy. You could probably take it out with one bunker buster and to cut off -- they're escaping, or they're coming back into Lebanon. So, I can see this conflict very quickly escalating. DEAN: And in the meantime, you have Israeli officials saying they're
going to strike back against Iran. We know they're coordinating with the U.S. government, as they make this decision. How do you see that playing out?
BAER: Well, if I wanted to bring Iran to its knees very quickly, I would send a couple F-35s and take out their oil facilities. It would destroy their economy completely, hit their ports. It would bring Iran to its knees. Now, it could be a measured response where they hit military bases. Netanyahu could say, you hit us. Now we're going to hit you. You hit our male -- our bases in Israel. We're going to hit yours. That would be a measured response. So, this is entirely up to Israel. It could also try to decapitate the Iranian regime.
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That would probably be harder. But, if we do take out -- if Israel does take out the oil facilities, this will cause oil to spike a panic, which will throw the American elections into chaos. I mean, things could change overnight.
DEAN: And so, there is the U.S. of this all, right, and what their role continues to be, and in the context around that as well that you just laid out, we're right up on an election here. Where do you see -- how do you kind of categorize the U.S. relationship to all of this right now, and how do you see that evolving in the next, let's say, few weeks?
BAER: Well, it's clear the White House has no control over Netanyahu. He says -- Netanyahu says we've been hurt in the October 7th attack. This was -- it terrified the Israelis, and they are determined to strike back at all of their enemies, and they're going to do it no matter what we say. On the other hand, the administration is constrained to support Israel at every stage after a decision is made. We have been knocking down many of these missiles in April and now that have been fired at Israel. So, we're part and parcel of this, and that means we're part of the conflict.
And as I've been talking to Homeland Security, there are his Hezbollah cells in the United States. They've been inactive for years. They may not be able -- capable of doing anything, but it's a consideration for Homeland Security.
DEAN: All right. Former CIA officer Bob Baer, thank you so much for your analysis there. We really appreciate it.
BAER: Thank you.
DEAN: Still ahead, smoke billowing into the skies of Beirut. We're going to keep a close eye on these new Israeli airstrikes and the rising death toll reports from Lebanon's Health Minister.
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DEAN: We now return to the chaotic scene unfolding in Beirut, where several large blasts have been heard by CNN teams there. Lebanese state media reporting three Israeli airstrikes hit the southern suburbs of the city earlier today. The Lebanese Health Ministry says at least nine people were killed in an airstrike in central Beirut. It's the first strike there since the 2006 war.
And as this war escalates, the IDF is issuing new evacuation orders for more villages in southern Lebanon. Israel's UN Ambassador telling CNN, his country's response to Iran's missile attack will be, quote, "very strong and come soon". And as Israel's war cabinet weighs its options there, the U.S. president is leaving the door open on whether he would support Israel hitting Iran's oil reserves in retaliation. He told reporters earlier, they are in discussions about that. On Wednesday, Mr. Biden made it clear he would not support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, but he says for now, there is no counter-strike plan.
For much more on this, we are joined by Natasha Bertrand, who is live from the Pentagon, and also Kevin Liptak joining us live from the White House.
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Let's talk to Kevin first. Kevin, we know that the Biden administration and the President are talking to Israeli officials, as they weigh their options here. What are you hearing?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yeah. And one conversation that we should say has not taken place yet is between the President and the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite the President saying several times over the last couple of days that he would be talking to him. So, we do await that particular conversation. But, we do know that the Americans are in pretty intensive consultations with the Israelis at this moment, trying to determine what the best course of action should be.
You did hear President Biden yesterday say very explicitly that he did not think an Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear sites would be a smart idea. But today, he did leave open the idea of a strike on the oil facilities, although he sort of left open much more. It sounded like there was a lot more in his head that he wanted to say, but he sort of stopped himself and kept going. So, I do think that this is the big question that's hanging over the White House now is, how exactly this will proceed, and whether or not it will tip over into a wider war? Of course, that's something that President Biden very much wants to avoid.
What you haven't heard from the White House is any sort of notion of telling the Israelis that they should not strike back, and that is a difference from back in April when the White House told Israel to essentially take the win after it successfully intercepted a barrage of Iranian missiles and drones. Now, there is an acknowledgement that Israel will respond and has the right to respond, but the question is, how? And you want them, in the eyes of the White House, to take a measured approach. That's something that they've been talking about over the last several days, and you want them to take an approach that isn't necessarily going to trigger a wider escalation. Now, the one thing that the President is also working on alongside the
nations of the G7 are new sanctions on Iran, and they discussed that yesterday on a virtual phone call. We don't know exactly what those would target. We also don't know exactly how powerful they would be, given that there are already enormous amounts of sanctions on Iran already.
Now, the question in all of this is, how much influence President Biden is actually going to have on the Israelis and on Prime Minister Netanyahu as they come to this decision? There is not a lot of evidence that the President has a great deal of leverage with Netanyahu at the moment. You've seen that in Gaza. You've seen that, as he tried to broker a ceasefire along the Israel-Lebanon border. Certainly, he is going to try and do everything he can to ensure that a wider war doesn't break out.
DEAN: All right. Kevin Liptak, thank you very much.
I also want to go now to Natasha Bertrand, who is at the Pentagon. And of course, Natasha, the American military very involved in helping shoot down some of those missiles a few days ago when Iran did strike Israel, and now they will be a piece of this puzzle as we, likely, as we look ahead to what comes next. What are you learning?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Jess. Look, I mean, the U.S. military has assets postured all over the Middle East, in the eastern Mediterranean as well, to prepare for the possibility that this escalates even further, with Israel hitting potentially Iran's oil and gas facilities, something that Iran has said publicly would cross a kind of red line and force them to retaliate even further against Israel. So, you can see how this can kind of continue to escalate and potentially, again, cause the U.S. military to respond in the same way that it did earlier this week when it shot down a few of those missiles that Iran fired at Israel from the eastern Mediterranean via the Navy destroyers that have been stationed there.
But, the U.S. military has said that it's prepared for a range of contingencies here. They have bolstered their force posture in the region, increased the number of U.S. troops that are there, in order, not only to help defend Israel, but of course, to help protect the roughly 40,000 American service members that are in the region right now.
And importantly, this question looms over this entire conflict, which is that of a possible evacuation operation. If things continue to get more and more heated between Israel and Iran, between Israel and Lebanon, will that then prompt some kind of mass noncombatant evacuation operation, which the U.S. military would have to be heavily involved in? For that reason, there are thousands and thousands of U.S. Marines that are currently stationed in the eastern Mediterranean and really prepared to carry out such an evacuation at a moment's notice, if necessary.
But, for now, U.S. military is postured in the Arabian Sea, in the Red Sea, in the Mediterranean, with all of these assets to shoot down missiles and intercept incoming as necessary, Jess.
DEAN: All right. Natasha Bertrand at the Pentagon, our thanks to you, and Kevin Liptak at the White House. We really appreciate it.
Coming up, a deadly week across Lebanon. We're going to have more live coverage of Israel's latest strikes in southern Beirut and elsewhere in Lebanon. That's in just a moment.
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Plus, there are growing humanitarian concerns across Lebanon. We're going to speak to the head of one humanitarian organization there, when we come back.
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DEAN: Welcome back. You're watching CNN Newsroom, and I'm Jessica Dean in New York.
We now return to the chaotic scene that is unfolding in Beirut, where several large blasts have been heard by our CNN teams there, and you can see what look like large plumes of smoke rising from part of Lebanon's capital. Lebanese state media reporting three Israeli airstrikes hit the southern suburbs of the city. Israel says it was targeting Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters. Meantime, the Lebanese Health Ministry says at least nine people have been killed from a strike in central Beirut. And as the war escalates, the IDF is issuing new evacuation orders for more villages in southern Lebanon. Israel's UN Ambassador tells CNN his country's response to Iran's missile attack will, quote, "be very strong and come soon".
Today's destruction in Beirut comes amid growing fears of a broader regional war. The United Nations says about one million people in Lebanon have been displaced in recent weeks, and the country is appealing for $427 million in aid to provide humanitarian relief.
CNN's Ben Wedeman has more from Beirut and its southern suburbs.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Smoke rises from the ruins after another night of Israeli airstrikes. Atop the rubble, a man first salutes, then embraces a photograph of the assassinated Hezbollah leader.
WEDEMAN: This is just one of the latest buildings struck by Israel in the southern suburbs of Beirut. For the last 10 days, the southern suburbs, as well as South Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley, have been pummeled by Israeli airstrikes. And now, according to news from Israel, an additional division is being deployed to the northern border in anticipation of what could be a full-scale Israeli invasion of Lebanon.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Wednesday, Hezbollah organized a mob of media for a tour around the southern suburbs to show perhaps they're still in control. I asked spokesman Mohammad Afif how Hezbollah will deal with Israel's repeated blows, a he question he didn't like. I won't allow for that expression, he replied. Your Arabic language is not correct. His aides chant loyalty to their assassinated leader. We haven't taken blows. I completely reject that, he says. The resistance has recovered. The leadership is well. The command and control is well. The arsenal of rockets is well. Thousands of the heroic men of the resistance on the fronts are well.
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Most inhabitants of the southern suburbs have fled elsewhere. Yet, some like Mahsin Abbas (ph) insist on staying put. My family left, but I'm staying here, he says. They're bombing normal. What else could happen? Wednesday, Hezbollah fighting on its own rugged turf in south Lebanon, inflicted heavy casualties on Israeli forces that crossed the border, hours after its ally Iran rained down missiles on Israel, a war that started in Gaza has spread to Lebanon. In the last week, Israel has bombed Yemen and Syria. If this isn't a regional war, what is?
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Beirut.
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DEAN: Joining us now is Michael Adams. He is the Country Director for CARE, Lebanon. Michael, thank you so much for being here with us.
MICHAEL ADAMS, CARE LEBANON COUNTRY DIRECTOR: Thank you.
DEAN: And I understand you're coming to us from Beirut. You were there on the ground. I just first want you to describe the humanitarian impact of these strikes and what you all are seeing.
ADAMS: Great. Thank you. Yes, indeed, we're having significant amounts of bombings that are happening daily now, even throughout the night. The impact has been, of course, primarily on the civilian populations. We're seeing thousands upon thousands of people that are fleeing the neighborhoods into other neighborhoods of Beirut itself for safety and security and looking for shelter. These people are not in any way carrying their own family home goods. They are actually looking for food and shelter and water and anything that will help provide some safety for them.
The number of people that are that are moving is, yes, above a million people, and they're moving not just here in the Beirut area, but the Mount Lebanon area. And already, the shelters that have been assigned by the government of Lebanon are full and overflowing with individuals in those shelters. We also see that they're a number of children. There is -- about 47 percent of the people that are in these shelters are children. So, along with the movement of them going up the coastline towards northern Lebanon, they are also moving from the Beqaa Valley. That's heavily being bombed as well, and people are moving towards the coast, but they're also moving towards the Syrian border as well, and becoming refugees in Syria.
DEAN: What are the greatest needs that you're seeing? I hear you mentioning basic necessities, food, water, somewhere safe to be. What kind of needs are you seeing that feel like the greatest need right now?
ADAMS: Well, as you can imagine, with this number of bombings, I mean, you literally are getting first aid issues. People are injured. People are seeking some sort of first aid. The city is well-equipped, but not equipped enough for the number of people that are injured. We are seeing significant amounts of people that are just wondering about living in the streets, living in parks, families that are huddled together seeking some form of shelter. They don't have foods. They don't have water. And of course, we need to provide them with mattresses and blankets and pillows. Those are the essential needs that they all are needing right now. And because there are so many of them, it is overwhelming the existing systems, and of course, our ability to be able to meet all it needs as quickly as possible.
DEAN: And I do wonder, are you able, to that end, to get aid supplies into Lebanon and actually distribute it to the people that need it? What kind of challenges are you seeing there?
ADAMS: We are, but there are tremendous stresses on them. I mean, the logistical value chain is actually very, very difficult right now. Since 40 years now, we've had a real economic crisis here in Lebanon, and we've also seen some challenges with goods coming into the country. The price of goods are escalating at a very high rate as well. So, things are becoming unaffordable. Right now, we do see some stresses on the general communities. The supermarkets do have some supplies, but they are running out quite quickly. And so you can see that trick lot, in fact, all the way up the country as well. And it's getting worse in areas that are harder hit. In southern Lebanon itself, a lot of the markets are not working anymore. And so, we need to have a new effort to try to sufficiently stock supplies as much as possible.
DEAN: And as you're talking, we are playing some video, in a lot of it we see a lot of kids, a lot of children, women.
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It seems like they are being disproportionately affected by all of this.
ADAMS: Absolutely. Women and children, girls, especially, they're disproportionately affected as well. So, they have, I guess, the most vulnerable levels of interaction with society, and even within the shelters themselves, we have to make sure that there is sufficient space for them, as children and women to have access to safe spaces, even ablution facilities, toilets. All of these things are hard to come by in these shelters. So, we need tremendous amount of resources to be able to come in and ramp up these facilities so that they can actually meet the need.
DEAN: All right. Michael Adams, coming to us from Beirut, where the need for those civilians is great, thank you very much. We appreciate it.
ADAMS: Thank you. DEAN: And we have breaking news out of Gaza. Nearly 100 people have
been killed by Israeli airstrikes in the past 24 hours. That is according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which is reporting 99 deaths and 169 injuries. And here you can see the destruction left behind in Khan Younis. With today's numbers, the ministry says the total death toll there since October 7th has risen to nearly 41,800 lives lost.
Still ahead, the enormous relief effort to get aid to victims, we're going to talk to the Red Cross about what's being done and what's needed in the southeastern United States.
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DEAN: We will continue to follow the latest out of the Middle East.
But, for now, let's turn to Special Counsel Jack Smith in his fullest picture yet of his 2020 election case against the former President Donald Trump. The 165-page document from Smith's office argues actions Trump took to overturn the election were in his private capacity, not as President, but as a political candidate. Therefore, Smith argues Trump is not entitled to protection from prosecution that the Supreme Court justices identified back in July. The new filing coming just weeks before the November U.S. election, Trump arguing this is, quote, "a hit job", while basically claiming the Harris campaign was directing the Department of Justice.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He is a deranged person. I call him deranged Jack Smith, and he works for Kamala and he works for Joe. This was a weaponization of government, and that's why it was released 30 days before the election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Again, absolutely no evidence of that.
But, for more on this story, let's bring in CNN's Jessica Schneider, who joins us live from our Washington, D.C. bureau. Jessica, his new filing has a lot of new details for something that we thought we knew a lot about.
JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Jessica. I mean, the Special Counsel here, what they're doing, he is laying out in tremendous detail the case against Donald Trump when it comes to the election interference criminal counts, because this case has been on pause for about a year now.
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And what this filing is, all 165 pages of it is, it's Jack Smith and his team trying to convince the federal judge here in D.C., Tanya Chutkan, to let their case proceed, because, remember, the Supreme Court ruled in July that former presidents cannot be prosecuted for their official acts. So, this filing is laying out, in the Special Counsel's view, all the ways that Donald Trump's actions weren't official. Instead, they're classifying everything Donald Trump did in the lead up to the 2020 election and after as private acts that he made in his capacity as a candidate and not as a President.
And what we're seeing is a lot of new detail here that previously hadn't come to light. Most of the new detail involves Trump's then- Vice President, Mike Pence, and it's interesting, because we're getting a glimpse at details that Pence told the grand jury, as this investigation has been churning through the years. So, in this filing, we're seeing details of repeated attempts throughout the end of 2020 of Mike Pence actually trying to convince Donald Trump to concede the election, telling him that there was no evidence of widespread election fraud, something a lot of Donald Trump's officials or White House officials or campaign officials were trying to tell him.
At one point, Trump berated Mike Pence in a phone call. Trump apparently told Pence that hundreds of thousands of people are going to hate your guts. People are going to think you're stupid. And then, Jessica, there is some really poignant detail about a White House aide telling Trump that when Mike Pence was in danger on January 6 and had to be rushed to a secure location, telling him all about it, Donald Trump apparently responded, so what?
So, we have heard a lot about this overarching plan to thwart the 2020 election results. It's all been revealed to the American public before. But, Jessica, in this particular filing, there was a lot more detail, especially as it pertains to Mike Pence than we've really ever seen before.
DEAN: It is remarkable. All right. Jessica Schneider, thank you so much for joining us.
U.S. President Joe Biden getting a firsthand look at damage in Florida and Georgia after Hurricane Helene. This follows his tour of devastated areas in North and South Carolina on Wednesday, where he pledged federal support.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The United States, the nation has your back. The nation has your back. We're not leaving until you get back on your feet completely. My heart goes out to everyone who has experienced the unthinkable loss. But, we're here for you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Helene has killed at least 200 people across six states. In Tennessee, two state investigations are underway after 11 people at a plastics factory were swept away by flood waters, with only five of them being rescued at the last report. According to the Associated Press, several workers have said they weren't allowed to leave before that flooding happened. The company, Impact Plastics, says it's preparing its own internal review and will cooperate with state investigators. That destruction from Helene is so severe, there are fears many communities simply will never be the same. CNN's Gary Tuchman spoke with residents in a hard-hit area of North
Carolina. Some have plans to rebuild, but many others have no idea what their next steps will be.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): I walk with a man who plans to deliver two five gallon cans of gasoline and food to a friend whose storm-damaged house is at the bottom of a North Carolina gorge. The only road in and out was largely destroyed in the storm. So, now you can only leave via emergency helicopter or by taking a vigorous and muddy three-mile hike out, about 1,000 feet up.
TUCHMAN: It will undoubtedly be a very long time before our vehicles are safely able to use this road again. Josh, how much farther do you think we have here?
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The man I'm walking with, Josh Parker, hasn't been able to get in touch with his friend Brian, and is worried. We run into other civilians who have been hiking down in order to help survivors who are either stranded or don't want to leave.
As we approach the bottom of the Green River Cove gorge, we run into Fred Russock. He was among many gorge residents who rode out the storm.
FRED RUSSOCK, GREEN RIVER COVE RESIDENT: The older people would infirmities have been airlifted out. My place, total loss, but --
TUCHMAN: I'm sorry.
RUSSOCK: -- I expected that.
TUCHMAN: I'm sorry about it, man.
RUSSOCK: But, I'm alive, and my loved ones are alive, and getting folk and such. So, we got everybody.
TUCHMAN: I'm glad you're OK.
RUSSOCK: We got safe that night.
TUCHMAN: I'm glad you're OK.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): We arrive at the bottom after about 90 minutes of hiking, houses, RVs, cars, trucks destroyed. Roads have disappeared into the Green River, which is now so wide it's unrecognizable to residents.
TUCHMAN: Your house, you can tell is beautiful.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was. We'll get it back there again.
TUCHMAN: You're going to rebuild?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, if they let us. We don't even know what's -- yeah.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): As we make our way farther into the gorge, a helicopter starts flying directly towards us.
[11:45:00]
Aboard the chopper are members of the South Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team. Two of the rescuers being repelled down to the ground to make sure people are OK. As of now, there have been no reports of deaths in the gorge or serious injuries. We see Fred Russock again at his property. He was in his home when the storm hit, but found higher ground.
TUCHMAN: This is where your house was before the storm.
RUSSOCK: Yes, sir. This is where my house was. The front corner to kitchen, right across that monkey grass, door be facing right at us, just to the left of that push mower.
TUCHMAN: OK. And there is this huge tree.
RUSSOCK: Yeah. The house got pivoted.
TUCHMAN: Here is where it is.
RUSSOCK: Let us turn to arrive there against those trees, before this debris trapped it. So, it didn't continue going down and around back into the river like most debris did here.
TUCHMAN: This is incredible.
RUSSOCK: It's incredible. I mean, it was epic. It's sad. I mean, I pretty much lost everything.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The house has been in Fred's family for more than a half century. His late grandmother lived there.
RUSSOCK: I wholly intend to rebuild. I feel like my sweet grandma, Katie, would have expected me to do so. She got me hooked on these white water rivers and the lovely great outdoors. This was beyond my control, Grandma Katie.
TUCHMAN: So, you're doing this for your grandma, for yourself. This is your life.
RUSSOCK: This is it. This is in my blood.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Before hiking out of the gorge, Josh Parker finally gets to his friend Brian's house, only to find he is not there. We are told Brian was airlifted out just hours earlier when his health became a concern.
TUCHMAN: Do you want to leave the gasoline here anyway?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to leave it for somebody because --
TUCHMAN: Yeah, somebody can use it.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Brian's dog, Maggie, wasn't taken on the chopper, but volunteers are about to take Maggie on the long hike out of the muddy gorge.
TUCHMAN: So, how long will it take to rebuild and repair this gorge community? Well, even if it was the only community in the state of North Carolina to suffer damages, it will undoubtedly take a very long time because the damages are so extensive. But, this is one of many communities in the state with similar problems. So, people we've talked to there realize that it's very likely it will take years to get back to normalcy.
Gary Tuchman, CNN, in Saluda, North Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: And joining us now is Evan Peterson. He is the National Spokesperson for the American Red Cross. Evan, thanks so much for being here with us. Just watching that piece from Gary Tuchman, it really underscores the incredible devastation that so many Americans are feeling right now. From your perspective, as someone who runs into the disaster to help people, help our viewers understand the scope of what you're seeing, from your perspective, with this particular disaster.
EVAN PETERSON, NATIONAL SPOKESPERSON FOR THE AMERICAN RED CROSS: That testimony was absolutely heartbreaking, and unfortunately, here in North Carolina and really just all across the impacted areas from Hurricane Helene, we are hearing very similar stories. Our hearts are with these people. Our mind and our thoughts are with them, and that's where our focus is. We know every day, it seems like in every hour, this situation and our understanding of who is impacted, where they've been impacted, has been changing. Specifically here in North Carolina, I'm at our Charlotte headquarters here. Infrastructure is a major problem. So, there may be pockets of people that we know we need to get to, but we just haven't been able to yet, because that infrastructure, those roads, those bridges, aren't there yet.
But, for those who have been telling us, we are doing our best to reach them, because we need to get them back to safety, and that's what we're providing right now, a place for shelter, a place for comfort and care.
DEAN: It is incredible because this storm hit over the weekend. It's now Thursday. And you and other officials are saying we're still trying to get to some of these people. The logistics are so difficult and the damage is so severe, you can't even get to them yet.
PETERSON: It's pretty profound to just say that out loud, that as of today, we are one week out from when this thing came barreling in. And the thing is, is that there are still many people who have not been in contact with their loved ones yet, and those are the pockets of people that we know that are out there that can't communicate. We also understand what we're hearing from our emergency responders who are working to build those bridges, build those roads and clear that way, that there are likely still places where there are pockets of people that we don't know yet.
So, we are doing our best to care for those people. Everyone who comes to our shelters, and those people in the communities who need help, who don't want to leave home, we are bringing aid to them.
DEAN: Yeah. And just I want to note, as we're talking, President Biden is in Florida after being in the Carolinas earlier this week. And I know, Evan, that a response like this has required both government response bipartisan, both sides of the aisle, state, local, county, but then also too groups like yours, and it really is a coming together of all of these pieces.
[11:50:00]
How is that working, and are you all able to kind of coordinate with each other effectively, especially considering the logistical challenges?
PETERSON: This is something that the Red Cross does every single day of the year, 24/7, 365. We respond to disasters from the home fire, the apartment fire, which is a devastating ordeal for a single individual or a family to major responses like this.
The benefit of our organization and what we do is that when we saw this pop up on your broadcast, this was appearing on the radar, those people that we had in these communities, those resources that we had in these communities, we mobilized them and got them ready, so that as soon as the need for help in the all clear was given, we could immediately respond, and we are only able to do this because of our ability to work with our partners at the local, county, state and federal levels, and then the generosity of the public and the donors who support our mission, and we cannot thank them enough.
DEAN: And so, as we're talking and we're looking at this video, that is just absolute devastation for so many people, talk of years, to get it back to maybe close to what it used to be. If people are watching, what can they do? Because it looks overwhelming, like it can't be fixed. What can people do to help these people?
PETERSON: First, I want to tell people that we can get through this together, and we are going to be with you every step of the way here. For those people who want to support our mission, the most effective way to do that right now is to making a financial donation to our organization. You go to redcross.org and you can support our cause there, because every single service that we provide people is completely free of charge, and we know that, again, this escalation or understanding and comprehension of the situation is growing by the day. We need to make sure that everyone who comes in our door, everyone who calls our phone lines, everyone who visits our website who needs help, we can deliver it to them.
DEAN: All right. Evan Peterson from -- for us from North Carolina, thanks so much for joining us, and good luck to the long road ahead. And our hearts are with so many people there in North Carolina and throughout the southeast. Thanks so much.
And for more information about how you can help Hurricane Helene victims, you can go to cnn.com/impact. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: And we are getting breaking video, and this is southern Beirut, where just moments ago, we're told, there was a new airstrike there.
[11:55:00]
We are still working together details. But again, this all happening, as we're seeing continued strikes on Beirut by the Israelis. Beirut being hit for the first time since 2006. And you're seeing there video from just a few moments ago of the smoke coming out after that newest airstrike. So, we'll continue to keep an eye on that.
Before you we go, we do want to continue to update you on what we do know out of the Middle East, the region, of course, bracing for Israel's retaliation against Iran for Tuesday's missile strikes. U.S. President Joe Biden saying nothing is going to happen today. He says the U.S. is in discussions, though, about possible targets, including Iran's oil reserves, but he said nuclear sites should be off limits. Israel, meantime, escalating its war on Hezbollah in Lebanon, the IDF saying it struck Hezbollah's intelligence headquarters in Beirut. Hezbollah also saying its media office was targeted.
And earlier, as we mentioned, an Israeli airstrike striking the very heart of Beirut for the first time since 2006. The ground war there could be escalating as well, as Israel has now issued dozens of additional evacuation orders for southern Lebanon.
Stay with CNN. We're going to continue to following that breaking news in the coming hours.
In the meantime, thanks so much for spending part of your day with me. I'm Jessica Dean in New York. Stick with CNN. One World is up next.
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