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united states or wherever around the world, i'm richard quest in london and this is the cnn "newsroom." we'll tell you about the scale of israel's bombardment of gaza. new cnn analysis is putting this in greater context. the idf continues not to let up in its fight against hamas. the special counsel rejected. the u.s. supreme court denied a major request by jack smith in his presidential immunity dispute with donald trump. now the former president and what he says. join me in the kitchen, lord help us all, as i make holiday bri with the founder of the food blog "half baked harvest". >> 4:00 in the morning on the east coast of the united states,

9:00 london, and 11:00 in gaza where israel's military said it's pressing ahead with operations in gaza despite pressure to scale back the offensive. an idf spokesperson said the campaign will widen to new areas with an emphasis on southern gaza. the united nations security council adopted a negotiated solution. the u.s. abstained because the resolution did not condemn hamas. >> it took many days and many long nights of negotiating to get this right. but today, this counsel provided a glimmer of hope amongst a sea of unimaginable suffering. today this counsel called for urgent steps to immediately allow safe, unhindered, and

expanded humanitarian access. >> the red crescent society said it received 78 trucks on friday through the rafah border crossing, that's through egypt. and israel began to allow some aid trucks to pass to gaza from israel. and president biden said he's heart broken to learn of the death of an israeli-american hostage. 73-year-old gad hadid died in hamas captivity in gaza. we're following all the events in gaza. seems appropriate to start with the idea that israel is widening the offensive in southern gaza. >> it is. and that's going to make getting

aid into gaza that much more difficult. i know clear details around what that might look like, what cities in southern gaza will form the focus of this winding expansive of israel's military operation inside gaza look we have seen the military calling on civilians to evacuate saying they will look to widen not just air strikes but the ground forces in gaza. that has raised alarm bells. some 1.9 million palestinians in gaza are already displaced, the vast majority in the southern part of the gaza strip. we've seen them living in tent cities. there are real fears, concerns if we see a revamping, doubling down of the military operation on the ground and in the air in southern gaza that civilian death toll is going to continue rising and that southern part of

gaza has been important for getting the aid in, this is a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of aid before the war. so not only are we expecting to see the civilian death toll mounting but the humanitarian situation is only expected to get worse. >> the united nations security council resolution, the issue becomes, a, getting more aid through arafah and ramping up through kalem shalom. >> yes. and they're looking at how that will be put in practice saying the israeli government has put obstacles in the way of aid distribution, ensuring there are security guarantees for aid organizations operating on the borders and attempting to

operate on the ground. as we know, the situation is dire, this resolution has brought some hope but, of course, that will need to bring practice into force very, very quickly. we're talking about more than 2 million people according to the humanitarian organization now facing acute food insecurity. we're hearing about pafamine. we've heard warnings about how dire the situation is. listen. >> translator: the situation is bad. the health situation is bad. the economic situation is bad. the humanitarian situation is bad. diseases are widespread and there's a shortage of food. so every day i come to work, i witness all the sufferings that we could never have imagined. >> reporter: on friday we saw 70 aid trucks crossing into southern gaza but a fraction of what we used to see.

500 trucks estimated passing through before the war began. >> i'm grateful. nada, thank you. now to israel. thank you for taking time to talk to me. i want to start on this idea of the -- the further push into southern gaza. israel told people to go south and then once they've gone south they told them to move around the south in different areas. now they're told to move -- there's nowhere to go mark except scrub land with no facilities, no water, no toilets. where would israel now like those people to go? >> well, richard, i think when we told people to move out s-- south out of the north that was

the right thing to do. all those people that moved south did the right thing and accepted our advise. over 90% of the population moved to the south. it was common sense to move away with the heavy fighting in the north. now we've had to be more specific and we've asked people to go to specific areas we don't intend to see serious intensive fighting. we're urging people to get out of the line of fire we don't want to see civilians caught up in the cross fire. >> be realistic, mark, you're moving hundreds of thousands of people into very limited areas. amongst massive bombardment, there's simlyply not the space facilities to move those people into that area on a humanitarian ground. >> two comments. first of all, it's obviously difficult to move and move again. my own father was a refugee in

the second world war. i know what it's like -- i heard firsthand what it's like to have to move from a war situation. it can be very difficult. but surely all the troubles in relocating are nothing compared to the possibility of getting killed by being caught up in the cross fire. and if israel is saying we know there's fighting in a particular area, hamas is imbedded there, and we're asking civilians to leave we urge them to do so we don't want to see them hurt. >> let's move to the question of the aid coming as a result of the u.n. security council. the united nations secretary general has pretty much summed up his view on what the problem is. he said, basically, in a statement, the single largest problem in getting aid into gaza was the -- was israel's

bombardment, israel's continued attack. >> let's be clear. as you reported, israel opened the kerem shalom crossing. israel has placed no limitations whatsoever on food, water, medicine, shelter that thing going into the gaza strip for the civilian population of gaza, who are not the target of our operation, our target is hamas. to talk about the secretary general's remarks he's been calling for two months for what he calls a humanitarian cease-fire and he's calling for a cease-fire for hamas. if you give a lifeline to hamas,

you're condemning us to more bloodshed in the future. they say that israel must be destroyed, do the october 7th massacre again and again. you keep hamas in power you condemn israelis and palestinians to more bloodshed down the line. >> you and i both know in the course of war and difficult stories that comments get made and need to be clarified. and one of them this week was from an israeli spokesperson who said there was no food shortage in gaza. now that comment being made at the same time as world food program, all of them, saying it's almost a famine in gaza at the moment. so let me give you an opportunity to clarify the comment that there is no food shortage or that there's plenty of food in gaza. do you wish to clarify it?

>> i can say the following. i know for a fact over the last few days there were trucks of food that israel authorized and that israel had also already completed the security check and yet they were still waiting at the crossing to enter. and not because of israel. there were all sorts of logistics issues they said inside gaza. and one has to ask the following question, richard. is it possible that hamas knows its only chance to survive is by sacrificing the people of gaza and saying we will not allow humanitarian aid to be distributed. we will keep this out. we want to artificially create a humanitarian crisis. that will create pressure for the cease-fire which is the only way they can save themselves. >> mark i'm grateful, thank you for taking the time to talk to me this morning. i'm grateful to you. thank you. >> thank you for having me. now in colorado two

paramedics were found guilty of criminally neglect homicide of elijah mccain. they injected the 23-year-old with ketamine while being held down by police officers. the officers stopped him on the way home during a suspicious person called. they argued the paramedics acted recklessly by not speaking to mcclain or checking his vital statistics. they said they were following their training and were told that ketamine is a safe effective drug. cnn reported having two paramedics standing trial for someone they treated in police custody is an unparalleled situation. the u.s. supreme court has declined the request by special counsel jack smith to fast track arguments on whether the former

president had any immunity from federal prosecution. the high court's decision will likely delay the start of mr. trump's election on subversion issues. cnn's evan perez has more. >> reporter: the u.s. supreme court rejected a request by federal prosecutors to skip the appellate court and have the high court decide whether donald trump has immunity on subversion charges. it deals a blow to jack smith's effort to keep a march 4th trial date on track. that's harder now that prosecutors have to wait several weeks while the d.c. circuit court of appeals weighs the same questions. trump is arguing he has immunity for actions he took while in office to pursue his claims of election frauds he also said because he was impeached by the house of representatives,

prosecuting him would violate the double jeopardy charge. the justice department had argued that the case deals with an unprecedented criminal trial of a former president and required taking the unusual step of bypassing the appeals court. the special counsel said that public interest in a prompt resolution of this case favors an immediate definitive decision by this court. the one sentence rejection by the supreme court on friday didn't come with any additional explanation. there's no notice of the sense among the justices. trump's claim of immunity could make its way back to the high court in the thick of the political calendar. the d.c. based appeals court has scheduled oral arguments on the immunity question for january 9th and that's just days before the iowa caucus on january 15th.

evan perez, cnn washington. the storm system that unleashed flooding rains on california is on the move. chad myers is tracking where it's headed next. it's a very busy holiday travel weekend worldwide. >> only a couple trouble spots one in the great lakes and the other the desert southwest and the four corners. the storm here is what made a mess in california yesterday and the day before. but the rain has moved away and into the four corners, snow in the higher elevations and snow for parts of colorado as far south as denver and colorado springs could pick up snow but by later in the afternoon i think it spreads to parts of nebraska and the dakotas. there's the rainfall, heavy rainfall and high humidity values across the planes could make rainfall around houston, new orleans, and could be some flash flood warnings in the area

there. christmas day, maybe not the best day to ride a new bicycle from the ohio valley to georgia. the snow is out west, that's the only place we're seeing a white christmas. the snow in the northeast got eaten away by the last storm that made the rain and wind. could be some visibility delays in denver. and as we work our way into sunday, i think all of this is going to be very, very light when it comes to airport delays. there still could be trouble around driving, especially in the wet weather but not in the white weather. look at chicago with a rain shower likely, a high of 52 on christmas day. >> 52 on christmas day. that's going to be a warmish christmas by any definition. u.s. and mexican officials will meet or expected to next week.

the issue is to slow the number of migrants streaming to the southern border each and every day. we'll be on the border when we return. and looking at the other issue, the u.s. economy that relies on migrant labor. going to iowa to see how recent comments by donald trump and the availalability of migranant lab are being g received.. this is s cnn.

some u.s. officials are warning that the southern border is what they're calling breaking point. encountering record numbers of migrants at the border every day, straining personnel and sources. it's a stressful situation that has led to president biden calling on the mexican president to do more to slow the pace of migrants. >> reporter: we are at a migrant camp here in eagle pass next to the u.s. border with mexico. behind me you can see a holding area where border patrol agents

take immigrants once they surrender to authorities so they can wait there before being processed. this is happening hours after borders and customs protections released the latest on number of apprehensions here, recording a total of 191,113 of what they call encounters with immigrants, apprehensions or people who turn themselves in. that compares to 189,000 or 4,000 more than the month of october. but these are only people who cross the border at sites other than a point of entry. if we add everybody else the figure is close to a quarter of a million. releasing the figures, immigration officials recognize they're facing a serious challenge along the southern border. and said they need more resources from congress to both enhance the security at the boarder and the country as a whole. and the reality is that the

impact to communities like eagle pass is brutal. this is a city of less than 30,000 people, local officials say they have to deal with this crisis with little or no help from the federal government. earlier this week we heard from congressman tony gonzalez a republican whose area includes two thirds of the border. he said his situation is at a breaking point. >> the biden administration is facing the criticism of what's going on at the border. the former homeland security director jeh johnson spoke with wolf blitzer about what he thinks they need to do about the overwhelmed border. >> this is, in fact, a situation that is unsustainable. 10,000, 12,000 a day, taxes resources not just border patrol not just communities along the

southern border but in the interior, places like new york and chicago. so we're in a crisis very much so right now. i guess if i were in the biden administration, i would be saying to the american public we are on this, we recognize this is a huge problem. we recognize this is a crisis and we will work with congress to add more authorities to address an emergency situation like this to more expeditiously remove people back to where they came from, all the while remaining humane, consistent with our values, being fair, being humane, but we have to address the crisis, raising the standard for asylum on the front end for example, perhaps considering some sort of emergency authority like title 42 to deal with numbers of this volume. but the president, in my

opinion, needs to really say directly to the american public, i recognize the problem, i'm on this, my administration is doing everything we can to address it, including working with republicans in congress. >> so that's half of the equation if you will. the former president, donald trump, came into scathing criticism for saying that migrants are, in his words, poisoning the blood of the country. tell that to the farmers in iowa. iowa holds the first in the nation caucuses in the next few weeks. and farmers there rely heavily on migrant labor. do they see it the same way? gary tuchman has been to iowa to see what they thought of former president trump's comments. >> reporter: corey, his wife and eight children have a large 24,000 acre family farm in the small town of west bend, iowa. >> we grow organic corn,

soybeans and oats are our three main crops. >> reporter: about 50 miles south, father and son gary and dave nelson also form corn and soybeans. >> how many acres do you have? >> about 5,000 acres. >> reporter: both families have successful businesses and have the same political outlook. >> who did you vote for for president in 2016 and 2020? >> i voted for trump. >> both times? >> both times. >> in 2016 and 2020 who did you vote for? >> donald trump. yeah. >> both times. who did you vote for? >> i voted for donald trump both times. >> harvest season is now over. corey said in the heart of the season he needed 90 workers. >> are there enough americans to take those jobs? >> there are not. >> reporter: so corey had 72 migrants working on his farm this year under the government h2a program he thinks the government needs to make it easier for migrants to come to

the u.s. to work. he hadn't seen what former president trump declared about migrants coming across the border. so we showed it to him. >> it's crazy what's going on. they're ruining our country and it's true, they're destroying the blood of our country, that's what we're doing. >> reporter: we asked, how does that make you feel about the man you voted for twice? >> it brings out a side of him i haven't decided what i'd do this year. >> whether you'd vote for him? >> yes. >> what do you think the people who work for you, who just left for the season, would think about those comments? >> they would be offended by that. >> reporter: gary and david said they would likely hire migrant workers in the future. >> i don't think it's appropriate. my ancestors came at one time and maybe the same thing was thought about them but they turned out to be great contributors to our country. >> reporter: the blood of our

country -- >> that's harsh words. it's not proper. not fitting from a presidential candidate. >> do you wish he didn't say that? >> definitely. he's using words from things like that in the past of the nazi piece in that, and that's been the hard thing with trump is just too many times things are said that it's like -- whether it's taken out of context or using examples that don't apply in these situations. >> reporter: son dave doesn't know who he wants for president at this point, father gary is supporting ron desantis. recent polling does show that a plurality of likely iowa caucus goers are more likely to support trump because of these comments. at the groggy dog restaurant in iowa -- >> it's true, they're destroying the blood of our country. >> reporter: i show the video to one of their customers and this trump supporter is okay with it. >> does it make you more supportive of donald trump? >> yeah. you can see he's pretty, like i

said, straightforward. spells it out for you right there. and what he wants and what he wants to do to make the country better. >> you don't think it's offensive? >> no. >> reporter: outside the restaurant -- do you think the comments are offensive? >> to some. >> is it offensive to you? >> no. >> reporter: to be clear, the farmers we talked to do not favor illegal immigration. they favor more legal immigration. u.s. agriculture they say needs it. >> if you could talk to former president trump and give him a message about his language and how to handle the situation, what would you say to him as a farmer? >> we need them to get our work done here. they're a necessity. and there's a lot of good people that come. >> reporter: gary tuchman, cnn, ford dodge, iowa. >> we're learning more about the mass i bombs that israel has been dropping on gaza.

one expert said this level of destruction has not been seen since vietnam. and the czech republic is honoring those who murdered in the worst peacetime mass shooting.

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.

welcome back to those of you joining me in the united states and around the world. i'm richard quest. this is the cnn "newsroom." despite pressure to scale back the offensive in gaza, the israeli military said it's preparing to expand operations against hamas. an idf spokesperson said the emphasis will shift to southern gaza as the campaign widens to new areas. i comes as the same day the u.n.

security council calls for a resolution involving unhindered access for aid to gaza. some criticize it for not demanding an immediate cease-fire. it calls for pauses. a new cnn analyst suggests israeli forces dropped hundreds of 2,000 pound bombs on gaza in the start of the word that gave a huge blast radius. i need to warn you, the report includes graphic images. >> reporter: even after a distance, the devastation brought on gaza is unmistakable. >> we are a few hundred meters from the boundary of gaza. but even here you can see the sheer intensity and scale.

>> reporter: this is what that looks like up close. scenes of destruction have become all too familiar. here the aftermath of another israeli air strike. this time in late october at the refugee camp. one of the most densely populated residential area in gaza. the bomb that caused it is a 2,000 pound bomb. likely made in the u.s. two times as powerful as the bombs used in the u.s. fight against isis. whole families wiped out in one blow. the refugee camp is an epicenter of israel's bombing campaign to understand the complete picture and scale of the destruction in gaza you need to look from above. in coordination with artificial

intelligence company synthetic. cnn was able to locate over 1900 craters left behind by bombardment in the first month of the war. we analyzed the diameter of the crater over 500 of which we are greater in 40 feet in diameter. our analyst covers the one month period to november 6th in which a staggering 10,000 people are believed to have died. the u.s.'s most senior diplomat testified on november 9th the number of dead could be higher. >> in this period of conflict and conditions of war, it is very difficult for any of us to assess what the rate of casualties are. we think they're very high, frankly. and it could be they're higher than are being cited. >> reporter: yet the u.s.

continues to back israel's bombardment. why is the death -- staggering? it's not just the point of impact. this is a crater, it can spread up to 1200 feet. an area equivalent to 60 soccer pitches or 90 football fields. the idf told cnn in stark contrast to israel's attacks -- hamas' attack omn men, women an children, israel is looking to avoid attacks on civilians. but is that true? you can see, this potential kill zone to be this entire area.

the devastation of gaza shows extensive bombardment in an area this populated and using these bombs is inherently indiscriminate. the human cost still soaring, surpassing 20,000. many of the dead still unburied, still under the rubble with no end in sight. to prague where emotions continue to be high as the city prepares to honor the victims of the deadliest peacetime mass shooting. this makeshift memorial has been set up at charles university where a gunman killed 14 people on thursday and wounded 25 people. an official day of mourning is under way and a nationwide moment of silence will take place later on saturday. some students paid their respects at the memorial.

>> translator: i have come to express my sorrow over the disaster that happened here. it's something unexpected. nothing like this has ever happened in prague. more over the gunman probably used to go to our school so we thought it was appropriate to come here and express condo lens to the victims and their families. of course, it's a shock. this is not america. such things don't happen here. i think it's terrible. >> now police have released this body cam video showing the officers searching the building where the gunman took his life after the attack. officials are urging the public not to spread information about him for fears of possible copycat attacks. the u.s. supreme court has given donald trump a win in his legal battle against special counsel jack smith. the concept of presidential immunity at the center of the courtroom fight. how it's been used before, it's all on the cnn "newsroom" next.

i told you earlier of the legal victories for donald trump as the u.s. supreme court rejected the request by the special counsel jack smith to fast track the case on whether the former president has immunity or any immunity from federal prosecution. the issue, crimes that mr. trump allegedly committed while in office in order to subvert the 2020 election. his attorneys claim he was working in his official capacity as president to ensure election integrity when he committed the interference and is therefore protected under presidential immunity. it's an idea that's been put forth before. brian todd looks at the concept of presidential immunity and how it's played out in the past. >> this is a very sad day for america. >> reporter: in arguing his innocence in the federal criminal case against him

related to january 6th. former president trump and his lawyers insist that trump's presidential immunity while he was in office extends to the criminal justice system. what is presidential immunity? >> presidential immunity basically means you cannot be sued or criminally prosecuted for certain acts as president of the united states. >> reporter: why is there an idea that a president shouldn't be criminally prosecuted for an act committed during their time in the white house. >> fphilosophically the heart o the argument on the immunity is that a president has to be able to move forward, make decisions at a rapid pace and can't be subject to lawsuits for any act that he takes, whatever act that is, that he can't be tied up in court rather than being acting as president. >> reporter: but nick ackerman said that applies to civil lawsuits against a sitting president not criminal suits.

>> it's a different situation if a presidident commitits a crime. under no circumstance does the president t have t the r right commit a crime. >> reporter: president richard nixon tried to invoke limited immunity in 1974 when he tried handing over his white h house tapes to the special counsel investigating the white house scandal he didn't try to invoke over criminal prosecution. >> the supreme court in the summer of 1974 swept all these arguments away and said that richard nixon had to turn over the tapes. >> reporter: nixon did hand over the tapes which contained evidence he was involved in the watergate cover up. shortly after that he was out. >> i shall resign the presidency at noon tomorrow. >> reporter: after leaving the presidency in his 1977 interviews with david frost nixon seemed to indicate he thought he was above the law when he was president. >> when the president does it, it's not illegal. >> reporter: but he was not

referring to to absolute presidential immunity. >> he was talking about a narrow band of national security and domestic security operations which for a period of time could be done in the united states and it not be illegal but even that narrow band which does not include insurrections and burglarizing the democratic national committee or your opponent party's headquarters. that narrow band was ultimately removed by congress and the courts. >> reporter: even though current special counsel jack smith was rebuffed in his attempt to get the supreme court to decide whether trump has presidential immunity some believe the supreme court will likely weigh in on that question in some fashion. the question is when since smith had been pushing for the january 6th trial to begin within a few months. brian todd, cnn washington. the holidays bring up the question, what should i cook? so this year i made a holiday

baked brie with the founder of the food blog "half baked harvesest".

long time viewers you know i'm a snacker, don't leave any

food on your desk if i am around. it doesn't matter if it's holiday cookies, turkeys, treats, anything i'm game for it at this time of year. this year i wanted to bring something different to the table in the most literal sense. so i had the chef behind half baked harvest show me how to make one of her signature appetizers. ♪ >> just getting started. >> we're making a cranberry baked brie a holiday appetizer. >> it sounds intimidating. >> it's easy. a quick cranberry jam, fresh cranberries. go cranberries. now maple. >> maple next. it's all over. >> dump the whole thing in. a little bit of vanilla which i think works really nicely with the cranberry. it's a nice holiday touch with the cinnamon we're going to put in too.

cinnamon is warming and also so good for you. so any of you guys fighting colds this holiday season. no. you need to cook. you don't eat them raw. so this is going to go on the stove. over medium, high heat, get it bubbling and broken down into a jam. >> medium, high heat. just leave it on that. and in that famous time honored cooking phrase, here's what i made earlier. >> yes. this is it. this is what you made earlier. some homemade cranberry jam. super easy. if you don't want to use your own, use a store bought cranberry jam, your own preserves. go for it, a little bit of help from the stores never hurt anybody, especially in the holidays. >> this is what the french do apparently. in the sense that the rest of us

in the u.s. and uk we make every cause to the point we're exhausted. where the french say i can get a better cake down the road for desert. and i'll make the beautiful starter. >> you want your puff pastry to be cold from the refrigerator so the butter is cold and not softened. we're going to make it work. we have it separated here by some paper. now we have a beautiful wheel of brie cheese. this looks perfect. we'll plop it in the middle. take a little bit of this -- >> you're not going to cut the top off? >> sometimes i cut it off, sometimes i don't. if you cut it off it's very melty if you leave it on, it'll be enclosed a little bit more you can break it and it'll be

gooey. >> so you want it to be fully covered? >> yeah. ideally fully covered but if some is exposed it's okay. the pastry i use at home is smaller and it doesn't fully cover the brie. this is a beaten egg we're brushing it over our pastry. and sprinkle on the sugar and it's going to bake up in the oven and be beautiful and sparkling and glistening and the beautiful holiday appetizer. i'm going to work more tv magic and put this in the oven and pull out a baked one that's going to look beautiful. >> oh my goodness. >> look at your master piece. >> look what the oven created. >> do you see how beautiful it is? this is my christmas cranberry punch. it has pomegranate. cran

cranberry. merry christmas, happy holidays. >> ready to cut this? >> please do. be my guest. >> i am looking forward to every morsel. >> it's pretty good, right? like the drink. super festive, easy. >> that is excellent. and look, santa is taking a deep dive at this aquarium in south florida spreading christmas cheer to the creatures at the keys aquarium. according to local media a scuba captain dolled out some taste tri treats to the residents, a variety of leaf fish, lobster got to feast thanks to santa's generosity. and before we go, a lot of people in the u.s. could be a merry christmas up to $650 million in today's power

ball back pot. there were no winning tickets on wednesday letting the grand prize pile up. five jackpots have been awarded with winning tickets in washington state, ohio, california. i'm richard quest in london, around the clock, this is cnn. more in a moment.

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. hello, and a very good day to you. welcome to you if you're joining me in the united states and all