under pressure, u.s. defense secretary lloyd austen is in israel and pressing for a more targeted approach in gaza as they call for a cease-fire. we're calling for the latest, former president trumps rhetoric is hitting new ugly lows. the gop front runner's latest attack on migrants talking comparisons to hitler. >> southwest airlines will pay up, we are talking $140 million fine for last winter's travel nightmare. we are following major developing stories all coming in on sienna's new -- cnn new

central. >> pressure is growing on israel to change its strategy and its war against hamas because the civilian death toll in gaza is skyrocketing and continuing to climb. secretary of defense lloyd austen met with prime minister benjamin netanyahu along with top israeli officials to get a clear picture of their military operations. the u.s. pushing israel for a more targeted approach , one that is less harmful to civilians in a press conference, austin reiterated u.s. support for israel. he said he discussed the future of gaza and the protection of its civilians with israeli leaders. >> we will continue to stand up for israel's bedrock right to defend itself. we will also continue to urge the protection of civilians during conflict and to increase

the flow of humanitarian aid into gaza. that is important, as israel fights to dismantle the hamas terrorist infrastructure in gaza. it will also be crucial for our work with our allies and partners after the fighting stops. >> remember, austen's trip comes days after israel's military says it shot and killed israeli caught -- hostages in gaza after misidentifying them as threats. natosha bertrand is following the latest developments, let's go to jeremy diamond who is live in tel aviv. israel is sharing new details about how this went down, the deaths of those hostages. walk us through what you are learning. >> we learned on friday these three israeli civilian hostages emerge from a building and were shot by a soldier who mistook them for a threat, they were shot and killed it we now understand two of them were

shot and killed on the spot, another one ran into a building injured and subsequent burst of gunfire were actually killed, it is not clear why that happened. we also understand they were waving a white flag as they emerged, here is the new photos that we have. new images showing in the building adjacent to where they were killed, there were two white flags with what looks like red sauce spirit on them's spelling out the words sos in one instance. in another instance, saying help, three hostages in the building adjacent to where they were killed and where the israeli military believes they have been holed up for some time. it's not clear they were abandoned or they escaped captivity, all this took place in the neighborhood of the gaza city where the israeli military has been fighting hard for the last couple of weeks trying to destroy one of the last remaining hamas strongholds.

this instance is growing a big focus on the israeli military's rules of engagement more broadly because you can only imagine the number of times an incident like this may have taken place with palestinian civilians instead of israeli for example. that's what a lot of palestinians are talking about in the white house is national security council john kirby saying israel may need to assess and readjust its rules of engagement and it may be something they have to take a look at. >> tell us about this title at the israeli military says discovered one of hamas's biggest. >> they israeli military says this is the biggest tunnel they have discovered in the gaza strip since they have conducted ground operations contact -- detecting dozens of tunnels. unlike most of those tunnels where you walk single file. this tunnel is far wider, big enough to drive a large vehicle. it goes as far as 50 m

underground part of a 2 1/2 mile network of tunnels. you did not cross from gaza into israel but it did come out about a quarter mile away which is the main crossing points between israel and gaza which is where hamas terrorists attacked on october 7th. they used it to get into israel and attack border security, it was not clear it was used october 7th. it is a clear indication of hamas's resources to build out these tunnel networks hundreds of miles of which exist according to hamas leaders, the israeli military says they discovered and secured the tunnel weeks ago. it was only over the last couple of days they chose to reveal it to the public which is something to indicate where they want to shift the spotlight especially as there is mounting u.s. pressure in gaza. they are choosing this moment to reveal this tunnel and put the focus back on them.

>> to jeremy's point about mounting pressure, secretary lloyd austen with the latest u.s. official to visit israel demanding they focus more on preventing the loss of civilian life in gaza. specifically what message the u.s. sends with this visit and rhetoric. >> they laid out during a press conference the discussions he's had with israeli defense ministry and the war cabinet, even benjamin netanyahu about the different phases of israel's campaign and the need to transition to a different phase, when the time is right, austen emphasized it is of course not the united states prerogative to dictate to israel minute -- when it moves, not the large-scale high- intensity operation we are seeing right now. he said a number of times very subtly that the u.s. does see this campaign operating in different phases.

he mentioned more than once that the next phase could the limited scope of operation that perhaps would not lead to the high number of civilian casualties we are seeing. and israeli defense minister was not necessarily on the same page however, it was a very nuanced back and forth. take a listen. >> this is israel's operation, i'm not here to dictate timelines or terms. our support to israel's right to defend itself, we also have great thoughts about how to transition between high- intensity operations to lower intensity and more surgical operations. >> we continue to operate in different levels of intensity according to the situation in the region, so all in all, there is no -- clock that is

running. >> austin making clear the u.s. is not trying to dictate how the israelis will be carrying out there operations. he does not believe there is a timeline, they will essentially shift to a new phase. this is all public facing. behind the scenes, we report that u.s. officials have been putting pressure on israelis to transition to a more targeted approach ideally by the end of december but perhaps by early january because of the mounting pressure and condemnation that has killed so many civilians. >> natosha bertrand, thank you both. let's dig deeper now with required -- with my clients, thank you for sharing part of your afternoon. on lloyd austen's visit, he's trying to with israeli officials

assess the campaign today and drilling down on the loss of civilian life. how would you assess the campaign and israel's ability to limit debts? >> i took that press conference differently, i think they are on the same page, the key is the whole timeline. the united states wants israel to abide by some timeline, in the past few weeks. the president says israel needs to stop indiscriminate bombing. it claims they have never done that, this is a very long campaign and now in the north, as they fight the military north of their border. you heard both the idea of defense minister and secretary austen talking about no specific timelines. they are talking to their respective domestic audiences but from my perspective, i

think the united states will support israel for as long as it takes in order to have so hamas surrender conventionally. >> domestic support for israel, israeli officials have come under fire for the deaths of three hostages mistakingly killed last week. given that there are are protests in the streets. a lot of people are angry and concerned about the well-being of hostages, how likely do you think it is that israel might rework its current strategy? >> i think that our strategy is the same in that they will try to get as many hostages back as they can alive. the initial, primary objective is to defeat hamas and they will not stop until they do that. commanders expect losses, there's collateral damage and what happened to hostages will cause tactics to change on the ground. perhaps get the message on the ground to figure out a way where hostages can sit all idf

soldiers. when you're on the ground face to face and what is the most difficult combat operation within such a built-up area with so many civilians which hamas hides behind, this was not a good expectation they would get 100%. the tactics will change but i don't think the strategies well. >> this pressure then to shift the strategy to restrict collateral damage in the death of civilians, do you see that is lipservice absent the u.s. putting any conditions on military aid that it gives israel? >> that is probably a good way to put it, it's not that they don't care. from how israel seems to be propagating their combat operations. they are doing what they can but like i said, commanders expect losses. they recognize they are losing the propaganda war, reports of 20,000 deaths. who knows whether that is right or not?

no one really understands, we cannot take anything coming out of that side as the truth. it's not that it is lipservice, i think they are doing what they can do try to maintain the high ground in order to defeat hamas on conventional terms. they have to get some kind of surrender. hamas is trying to get them to their level, make it look that israel is killing civilians. israel is trying to propagate on using the wars of land warfare. >> israel has not at this point killed or captured any senior hamas leaders. is that problematic? >> i think it is, i think the challenge there is those senior leaders are challenged by more civilians and not necessarily in gaza throughout the world. that will take spectral operations. look how long it took for us to find osama bin laden, i think that is something they have to be careful with, if you talk about hamas soldiers, those

leaders are hiding behind layers of civilians with their families. israel cannot risk having collateral damage. >> major my clients, thank you so much. we appreciate it. donald trump, the current gop front runner is hammering home his message on immigration to voters with just four weeks left, however it is a language he's using that is raising alarm bells and eyebrows. we will take a closer look at this plus millions of americans up and down the east coast are facing severe weather today already having an impact on travel as we are ramping up into a busy holiday week, respiratory illnesses are spreading fast hitting big portions of the country right now and the cdc says we have not even seen the p, what you need to know to keep your family safe and we are back.

congress is scrambling to get a holiday deal on immigration amidst a surge of encounters at the southern border. there is a humanitarian crisis overwhelming nearby towns. far from the border, last month, immigration authorities say they apprehended 192,000 migrants. a 2% increase over october at a rate that does not seem to be subsiding, in the first two weeks of december, there are more than 37,000 apprehensions in the tucson center alone. at texas, officials have suspended operations at two international railway crossings. >> as this plays out, the rhetoric around immigration is reaching some pretty grotesque new lows. the main culprit, gop front runner and former president donald trump. we will get his comments about

foreigners, first let's get an update from capitol hill where we have our chief correspondent, what is the status of these talks? >> prospects are growing grim of getting a deal that can pass the senate this week. the majority leaders, chuck schumer announced he would delay the start of the holiday recess bring back senators in the hopes that a deal could be reached and free up ukraine, aid to israel and a vote could happen, despite a weekend of talks, marathon negotiations between a handful of senators over new border policy, more restrictive border policies republicans have called for, there is still no deal. even if there was a deal in principle, it would make time to drop the text to give members a chance to review it and put it on the floor. the house has already gone until january which is when a lot of senate republicans are saying punt this whole issue until the house gets back.

a lot of complications about getting this over the finish line with no deal on border security. republicans say that must be dealt with first before they agree to get aid to ukraine and israel. all this continues to be tied up in crucial moments as the white house warns for immediate action. >> what about the trump factor? so many republicans follow his lead if he's campaigning about passing more restrictive immigration policy, his allies wind up backing them in this compromise bill, doesn't that deliver a win to the white house? >> it could be very complicated, if it does come together. imagine the deal that could be reached chuck schumer and senate majority leader agree with, most likely it does not go as far as donald trump would like, donald trump undoubtedly will come out then in that case and rail against it. that would make it much harder even if senate republican

leaders get behind this deal, they are a part of this deal but that would make it harder in particular getting it through the gop lighthouse where donald trump has enormous influence including members of republican leadership which raises a lot of questions, even if a deal is reached, they are able to get something through, can it pass the house or republicans could rebel? some hardliners told me they would not support a bill that compromises from the gop's hard- line position bill that passed earlier known as hr two, senate democrats say that it should go nowhere, donald trump, his rhetoric goes further. it shows you the real challenges of getting things done not to mention members on the left, progressives are raising serious alarms of the concessions the white house is making for more restrictive border policies, and the like which shows you the very difficult and narrow path to

get a deal that could become law. >> really hard to see where they will come together, thank you for that report. former president trump used fears about immigration as a launching point for his first presidential run and now he's using the disarray to stoke for your among supporters all over again, this time he's blatantly invoking nazi rhetoric. >> let's bring in omar, walk us through his latest comments. >> these latest comments came as former president was campaigning over the weekend in new hampshire and in nevada as well but in new hampshire, these are the comments that have gotten the most attention, president trump said that migraines and illegal immigration was poisoning the blood of this country and obviously, when you talk about nazi rhetoric, it is similar to the writings of adolf hitler when he mentioned poisoning in regards to foreigners coming into germany at that point, those are the correlations that

experts are looking at on this front, what is clear is we are a month away from the iowa caucuses and this was not just a turn of phrase, it is something he said repeatedly. he did so in early october, it seems to be part of at least some sort of strategy to make sure this is what voters are hearing from him in this final run-up, it was not just that, he also framed but would potentially be a general election between him and president biden. take a listen. >> joe biden is a threat to democracy. he's a threat, even vladimir putin. has anyone ever heard of vladimir putin? of russia, this is a quote politically motivated persecution of his political rival is very good for russia because it shows the rottenness of the american political system which cannot pretend to teach others about democracy. >> the biting campaign pushed back pretty forcefully writing

that donald trump channeled his role models as he impaired it adolf hitler, praised kim jong- un and quoted latimer proven to rule as a tater and for an american democracy. regardless of where people feel, these are the messages that are coming with this campaign in the lead up to iowa and they clearly feel it's messaging that will work. we are seeing a white away -- wide array who is no friend of donald trump, chris christie call the disgusting. it's a dog whistle to folks going through real struggles. he's trying to pin it on a group of people. he did just come out with an ad is saying. many have looked to being in

reference to people like president trump. where they stand on these particular issues but clearly in places like new hampshire for example. despite him having a mass this lead at least as far as the polls have shown over what is now has been months, a lot can happen in the final weeks and they are hoping that it goes in their favor. >> it seems to have no effect on donald trump's polling numbers. thank you so much for the update. the tab just keeps getting bigger, southwest airlines still paying for that holiday meltdown last year, the federal government not hitting the company with a massive fine. a prehololiday stormrm now hammerining the nortrtheast, ho will impmpact travelel when we baback.

i'm a little anxious, i'm a little excited. i'm gonna be emotional, she's gonna be emotional, but it's gonna be so worth it. i love that i can give back to one of our customers. i hope you enjoy these amazing gifts. oh my goodness. oh, you guys. i know you like wrestling, so we got you some vip tickets. you have made an impact. so have you. for you guys to be out here doing something like this, it restores a lot of faith in humanity.

southwest airlines got hit for a record fine for the disastrous 2022 holiday meltdown. the department of transportation slapping the airline with the government's largest ever civil penalty, $140 million. >> nearly 17,000 flights canceled, more than 2 million passengers left stranded during

that 10 day long debacle. pete muntean is on this, full disclosure, i was part of that meltdown. it was experiential journalism. i saw it from the inside, two out of the three here, you too. the d.o.t. citing southwest for numerous violations of consumer protection laws, what is southwest saying? >> southwest is really trying to spin this as a win for customers because in that $140 million fine, 90 million is going to a fund that will pay customers who are late three hours or more for their flight with $70 vouchers. $35 million, $140 million fine will go directly to the federal government. let's look back a year ago exactly today, december 1st, 2022. that's what office southwest scheduling crisis that started with the southwest major hubs

in chicago midway, in and then caused a behind-the-scenes meltdown of southwest airlines scheduling system. we are talking 16,000 900 flights canceled. 200 million people stranded, i just spoke to the secretary. it's all because southwest did not properly communicate or give the best customer service, they did not give refunds quick enough even though southwest has already given $600 million in refunds and reimbursements to customers, the big thing here is that this is really to send a message to other airlines. listen. >> things like that are unacceptable, we want to make sure that airlines understand it's going to be worth investing to prevent that. otherwise, you can face tough penalties in this department. to -- >> here's the statement from southwest calling this a

consumer friendly settlement which differs in the rhetoric from the department of transportation, it's a order that southwest pays all the money. interesting distinction there, we get an update on the strong coastal storm striking the northeast. how was it impacting the first day of holiday travel? this is getting longer all the time, here's the latest from the faa, the ground stop in boston would be over, in flights going to boston because of the extreme wind there. also, we see ground stops according to the faa places here like reagan national airport and new work which is a major hub. these are the latest numbers, 529 cancellation so far today. 2400 delays, let's put it into context. the weekend was relatively good

for airlines when it comes to cancellations. about 10,000 flights delays, the big difference especially when you look back at southwest was a snow event capped off with frigid cold temperatures. this is mostly rain this time around. >> that does help. maybe some people will not be taking a four day road trip from san antonio too. >> speaking from a little experience. we survived it and joked about it still, it was rough. his coastal storm we are talking about, it is not just affecting holiday travelers, there are more than 6000 customers who have lost power. rain or snow, cnn affiliate wcvb reporting wind gusts near 100 miles per hour and parts of massachusetts. toppling a lot of trees.

>> from flash flooding, let's take a look at where the storm is now from cnn meteorologist chad myers. >> it will still be wendy in maine, new hampshire, vermont, and massachusetts and even a coastal search. now 775,000 people without power, customers without power. usually there is three or four customers as you take a look at how many people live in a household. high wind up to 60 mph, the storm will move away this evening and the wind will die off. there will be dust throughout the great lakes where there has been snow in the early morning hours, we talked about how east coast this was. this is difficult driving across difficult parts of chicago earlier, this is what patterson new jersey looked like, people being removed from the car still 40 million people . it is still raining, because the wind is still pushing the water, the salt water on these estuaries.

look how this rainfall came down here, in parts of the low country of south carolina, georgetown, myrtle beach, north myrtle, murrells inlet up to 10 inches of rainfall plus the storm surge pushing water backup surfside into charleston, this is the salt water flowed for charleston, some of these numbers are as high as they have been without a tropical name to a storm. this was a big wind event pushing all that water into charleston as well. i hate saltwater floods because they do so much more damage. nothing is savable really when you get saltwater and electrical wires. it has to all be pushed away. >> a tough cleanup for those folks. chad myers from the weather center. >> still ahead, oil and gas

prices spiking after an oil giant, bp pauses all shipments because of security concerns, much more on the escalating tension in the middle east in just moments. also a major recall, quaker oats recalling more than 40 different types of granola bars and cereal products because of possible contamination, we have details for you on cnn news central.

energy prices got angel today after an oil giant, bp suspended all shipments. latest major company to halt operation because of increased attacks on commercial trips by rebels in yemen. we responded to another merchant vessel that came under fire in the southern part of the rent see. the u.s. military said the

destroyer shot down 14 drones turning commercial ships in this waterway, jim shooter with a snout, what can you tell us about these attacks, how the u.s. is responding and the ramifications? >> they do not want to become purely a u.s. versus the houthi to create a houthi iranian conflict. they do not want this war to expand. the u.s. has been the principal first responder. et cetera, the risk is so high that you have shipments saying we are out. merchants are not going through there, bp is not shipping its oil. it impacting the amount of oil going to the canal.

a lot of the oil and products, for the israeli port into the southern part of the country. they have not figured out a solution. shooting down a lot of missiles are not talking the -- stopping the houthi's from firing missiles . part of austen's goal is to get the allies together and say we will respond to this together. the uae is for more forceful military action. saudi arabia favors the dis- policy -- diplomacy. you will have to foot the cost. >> very expensive, no question. the oil transport through the canal is one third of normal volume, that's a big deal because a lot of oil that goes to europe is going to go through there. your option is to drive around and sail around the southern tip of africa to get to europe which is of course much more costly, it takes a lot longer.

it is effectively an expansion of the war in gaza. >> something like 20 u.s. warships, it does not seem like they are deterring actions. >> they can shoot some down, it seems to be in the houthi's interest and iran's difference . we are not controlling us but it serves our interest. it is messy and it has real regional and global implications. >> thank you so much, we are keeping an eye on this very important development., on headlines we are watching, a man serving a life sentence in texas for continuous sexual abuse of a child is back in custody after nearly a day on the run, authorities capture robert yancy jr. earlier 30 miles from the prison from where he escaped on sunday, texas authorities say two other people have been arrested in connection with robert yancy jr. escape . jailed opposition leader failed to appear at several court hearings again today, his team has not seen or

heard from him in 10 days raising further concern about his well-being. his arrest and incarceration are politically motivated to stifle criticism of russian president vladimir putin. the major food recall from quaker oats, recalling more than 40 granola bar and cereal products because they could be contaminated with salmonella, the classic, chewy granola bar variety pack and different dips bars. it's included in some frito lay stacked boxes, all in 50 states as well as puerto rico, guam, and saipan. if you are tired from everyone around you being sick, we have some bad news for you. we are not even at the respiratory virus season. we will have that after a quick break.

>> we're not as bad as blast year. last year was much worse. we're seeing the trip appeal lem the triple in different sickness. it will probably get worse in the holiday seasons. with that said, this is not that much out of the ordinary compared to before covid. it is now that we have an additional virus to contend with. so people should take the steps that we have been talking about all long to try to reduce the risk of infrequentses illness. if you have not gotten your flu

shot or covid shot, make sure you do it now ahead of the holidays. >> let's give people some reminders about what they need to do. what symptoms can be treated at home or you may seek medical care here? >> there are more than 200 viruses that can cause similar types of symptoms, feeling under the weather, could have, vinyl viruses and other ca -- ca rhone no viruses. they should be tested. other people less important to get tested otherwise, we should be testing all the time. so most of these systems can be

treated at home. but the things that probably should count with medical attention are shortness of breath or chest pain. a severe cough and high fevers that don't go away and individuals at the extremes of ages. so newborns and elderly individuals and people that are immunocompromised and heart problems, they should seek medical care sooner. and also seek medical care sooner if you're eligible for the treatments. the sooner that you can get the treatments, the more it can help with you the disease. >> hospital beds for kids are nearly full in some parts of the country. how do you think that the health systems are going to cope. >> at this time, we saw something similar. it was already worse. at the end of november, they were calling on the biden administration to call for a state of emergency because of

how situation. and omicron the beds were also full. we're seeing something that we have not seen in previous years and they are not as bad as the previous two seasons. and the hospitals are getting they are preparedness planed with. but it puts the onus on us as well as individuals. so many people have not been vaccinated are able to do so. the vaccination rates for the flu lab well behind what they were last year. when you look at the covid shot, only a third of people 65 and older have gotten that vaccine only a third have gotten the updated covid shop so there is a lot as individuals should be doing to prevent hospitals from getting overwhelmed as well. >> especially when so many people are sick. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> still ahead, as former president trump talks has it

crossed the line? there is a disturbing line between his words and the same language that has been used by certain dictators in the past. you're watching cnn central. we'll be back in a few minutes.