good evening, everyone. i'm ayman mohyeldin in new york. we are continuing to follow dramatic breaking news out of israel, where the palestinian militant group, hamas, has launched an unprecedented attack on southern israel. at around 6:30 a.m. local time this morning, hamas forces fired a barrage of more than 2200 rockets from gaza into israel. that is, according to the

israeli according to the israeli military. hamas -- took to the air, and infiltrated the country southern border by both land and sea. these really military says that unknown number of civilians and soldiers have been taken hostage by the group. it is an assault the likes of which the country has not seen in decades. following saturday morning's attack, prime minister management at a guy, vowed, quote, mighty vengeance, instead the country was now in a state of war. israel has already responded by launching airstrikes of their own, including one that flattened a multi story residential building in the heart of gaza city. the strikes continue well into the night, with flashes lighting up the skies, explosions can be heard and seen across the city. israeli officials say, at least 200 of their citizens have now been killed, with 900 injured in gaza. at least 230 people or did, and another 1600 are injured. that is according to. just a few hours ago, president biden delivered his first public remarks on the

escalating situation overseas. doubling down on the u.s. support for israel. >> when i spoke to prime minister netanyahu this morning, i told him the united states stands with the people of israel. in the face of these terrorist assault. israel has the right to defend itself and its people. full stop. there is never a justification for terrorist attacks. and my administration is support for israel's security is rock solid in unwavering. let me say this is clearly as i can. this is not a moment for any party israel to to exploit these attacks to seek advantage the world is watching. >> we have all angles of the story covered, sorting us off this, our again, loose nbc news national security and global affairs reporter, and allie raffa, nbc news white house correspondent. ali, i'll start with you, with the comment that we heard just there from president biden obviously administration has been very heavily involved in

what has been across is, what we've been hearing from the secretary of state as well, secretary of defense. what more can you help tell us on the u.s. response at the moment. coming to support? israel >> yeah, i, mean we'll continue to see really this all hands on deck posture from the biden administration that began in the in the wee hours of the morning that is continuing still right now. we have coronation communication among the national security officials. senior biden administration officials. the president, the vice president, cabinet officials, the secretaries of state, homeland security, defense, just to name a few. i'll try to get an assessment of the latest situation on the ground there. as far as intelligence just getting familiar with what exactly is happening there to be able to formally what their response is going to be. you heard the president say in that speech, there that he is committed to making sure that israel is going to be able to

defend itself for as long as it needs. he said that was a major focus of his call with prime minister netanyahu, this morning. and of course, we know the long, decades long history and relationship that these two but the president assured the american and israeli public that those differences they had would not get in the way of u.s. support for israel. the big question now, ayman, what that support is going to look like. we know that israel is the number one recipient, it receives the most u.s. aid right now. there is a big questions as to whether that aid could, the number, that aid could potentially shift. we know that, according to u.s. officials, as of late blasts -- this morning. israel had not requested to adjust that number, obviously, that could change. we don't know whether that support could come in the form of more military aid. or more intelligence help.

we have learned the u.s. officials have enhanced their intelligence sharing with israeli officials, because at the heart of the situation, was undoubtedly an intelligence failure. we know that u.s., as well as israeli officials, were caught off guard. and surprised by this. we know israel is renowned for its impressive and sophisticated intelligence and defense systems. yet, those are not able to deter this massive amount of incoming fire that came from these hamas militants. the big questions one of the next steps as pledged continued aid and support for the biden administration to israel as it is go worse, amen. >> ali, off with -- about this. in the white house statement that was put out earlier, there was a stern warning to any of israel's adversaries or possible enemies not to exploit the situation.

do you have any reason, already reporting, from the white house to believe that there was activity. or cause of concern for the united states right now? in to put that statement, to put that sentence in a statement that preceded the presidents remarks? >> yeah, white house officials are not saying exactly whether there was any concrete evidence that would prompt the president, including that in his speech. we know, just more broadly, from the foreign policy perspective, in platform, that we know that any sort of escalation in this region comes with it the risk of other middle eastern countries having tensions flared and we know that israel is the closest ally that we have in the middle east it is the country the democratic values obviously the united states is concerned that any sort of increased tension and increased aggression in this area could trigger other countries to follow suit and there's enough to deal with

what just the situation in israel. so, trying to tamp down any potential surges in the neighboring areas, amen. >> all right, ali, stay with me for a second, then, i'm with you hearing about the intelligence failure signal the imminent attack that could've shared with israeli. do we have any insight right now as to how and why an operation of this magnitude was missed? >> we don't have the answer here, amen. it does represent, by all accounts, a tactical failure. hamas achieved a tactical surprise in this situation. it is, i think, all the more surprising, given how israel has this reputation of having such an excellent, highly

effective intelligence service. that, for years have been able to penetrate hamas and other adversaries. i don't think we know the answer to that. it's also gonna raise questions about its defenses on the border. how it was positioned there, and how hamas fighters could have managed to do this. i think they were bracing for hamas attack, but on the other hand, they were ready today. i think the u.s. was also taken by surprise. it does harken back to 50 years ago to the yom kippur war, when israel was caught flat-footed. and that, of course, led to a lot of soul searching at the time. >> there's gonna be a lot of questions in terms of how hamas pull this operation off, whether or not it's backers in iran were tactically involved involved in the actual planning of the attack? do we have any indication is there any intelligence assessment to indicate whether

or not hamas was getting a tactical support from iran or iranian proxies in the region odd doggone echoes of the iranians have been operating over the use gorilla i think it was. telling the president, said that warning for others. not to explain the situation that was clearly directed at iran. and iran's proxies in lebanon, hezbollah. of course, israel has to worry that they may get it from that side. as well. >> ali, we know that one -- has been working the phones with allies in the region, including the arab allies and have peace, with allies in each. have you gotten any readouts as

to what diplomatic efforts are taking place right now from the white house in terms of trying to secure or work on securing with the release of the israeli captives that have been taken into gaza. >> yeah, i mean, that's another big question we have, as far as these calls that we're hearing, the president's been making throughout the day. what these calls, we know that the biden administration officials have given us a little bit of a summary on where what specifically but overall what was discussed on those calls. we're still awaiting a readout of the specifics. whether there were any specific asks made, or demands, specifically as you mentioned, with egypt and neighboring countries. we do know that the president also spoke with the king of jordan, in addition to prime minister netanyahu. that is something that we're out to the white house looking for, and we do await those readout of those calls. >> allie raffa, -- sorting us off this hour.

with all of those updates. thank you to the both of you. coming, up we're gonna take a closer look at that intelligence failure, both here in america and in israel. don't go anywhere. t go anywhere. with the money i saved, i started a dog walking business. i was a bit nervous at first but then i figured it's just walking, right? [dog barks] oh. no it's just a bunny! calm down taco. sit duchess. stop! sesame no no. archie! walter don't, no, ahhhh. ahhhhh! you're lucky you're so cute. only pay for what you need. ♪liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.♪

- [female narrator] five billion people lack access to safe surgery. thousands of children are suffering and dying from treatable causes. for 40 years, mercy ships has deployed floating hospitals to provide the free surgeries these children need. join us. together, we can give children the hope and healing they never thought possible. it's a mission powered by love, made possible by you. give today.

frustrated by skin tags? dr. scholl's has the breakthrough you've been waiting for. the first fda-cleared at-home skin tag remover clinically proven to remove skin tags safely in as little as one treatment. is it possible my network could take my business clinically proven tto the next level? it is with comcast business. powering all your devices with gig-speed wifi. and you get fast downloads and uploads. pick it up! pick it up! oh we got this! because it's powered by the next generation 10g network. more speed for your business? it's not just possible. it's happening. get started for $59.99 a month for 12 months.

plus, ask how to get an $800 prepaid card with a qualifying internet bundle. hamas attack took israeli comcast business, powering possibilities.

intelligence officials by surprise. particularly, the various methods the militants used to enter and leave israel. let's turn now to those intelligence failures. i'm joined now by colin clark, senior research fellow at the -- center, and norman rule, a nonresident senior adviser with the transnational project at the center for strategic and international studies. gentlemen, could have both of you. with us. let me start, if i can, with you, colin. and the element of surprise here. israel's deterrence has always been surprised with the element of initiative. in conflicts that it has. what happened today, something

very different. the initiative being seized by hamas militants in exposing something that we perhaps did not know that is roosevelt able to. this kind of multi but multipronged attack with land air and sea components. what do you make of how significant of a failure this, is both on a security level, but also psychologically to israel. >> thanks for having. me i think it's a massive intelligence failure. it's gonna have political reverberations. it's going to have domestic reverberations. within israel. it's just astonishing, but i'm still struggling to wrap my head around, not only was hamas able to have fairly sublime operational security, or opsec, and the fact that we look how sophisticated and complex this attack was, something that was clearly in the works for weeks, if not months. keeping that under wraps, keeping that away from any kind of human sources.

israeli signals intelligence, and i think, you know, i have to imagine that all of the domestic political turmoil in israel played some kind of a role here. we'll find out in the coming days and weeks, as there's a forensic to examine what when wrong. >> to that point, norman, that he just brought, up which, is when you think of the israeli government's capabilities, and what they've been able to demonstrate in the past, israel has no doubt infiltrated some of the highest ranks of palestinian militant organizations. they've carried out successful assassinations of palestinian militants, high-ranking military officials. within the paramilitary wing of hamas. how is it that they were not able to detect this. how could hamas important this of? without a human intelligence component, without the signal intelligence component, without perhaps even the surveillance component of what is being brought in in brought out of gaza.

do you think that egypt share some of that blame as well for the border that it has with gaza not being as tightly controlled as a possibly should have? >> good evening. and thank you for having me. this certainly does represent an intelligence failure. but there are a number of countries, to include united states, that one might ask why we didn't have a better insight into hamas preparations for this attack, they're planning, their development of tools, their intelligence selection, and, by the, way their plans going forward. we're talking an awful lot about the terrible events of today. but we are in the early days of what's likely a lengthy crisis. and our understanding of where that crisis will lead is on the desk of every major policy maker. what happened today was in the past. there will be a follow-up investigation to this. the israelis had such an investigation after 1993. right now, the intelligence

emphasis on all of the countries in the region, and ourselves, is going to be what happens tomorrow? >> speaking of what happens tomorrow, trying to get a read out of where these -- that hamas is taken back into the gaza strip might be right now. talk to me about what that kind of operation looks like from an israeli perspective. from u.s. intelligence gathering perspective. trying to find out where these captives are. where they're located. if they're moving them from one location to the other. ultimately, how that may be used by hamas and the militants in gaza to leverage what israel calculated is its next steps. >> it's a tremendously complicated task. that will involve an array of different intelligence analysts. understanding the source of vehicles used, personalities, engage in this action. their supporters, their logistics, what reflections we might see in the support architecture of hamas, that would indicate that something unusual is happening at a

location. it really caught quite complex. and involves a multi-in, geospatial intelligence, human intelligence, approach to this. i'm sure the united states is offering these rallies, not only what intelligence support we would have, but any sort of technical assistance we can provide to. to expedite the safe return of the sausages. and to prevent any further loss of life in israel. or gaza. >> colin, your thoughts on that? we certainly heard some, according to nbc reporting, that the u.s. was considering sharing with israel other intelligence gathering capabilities. what might that look like? what resources does the u.s. potentially have that the israelis don't, have that the israelis would need more of in this particular moment, as they consider the next 24 to 48 hours? >> well, with all due respect to norman, and i do have great respect for him, i find it hard to believe that the united states should be expected to have more exquisite

intelligence in israel's backyard then the israelis themselves. we're not talking about a sub optimal partner here. we're talking about them assad, in world-class intelligence. so, of course, the united states is an ally will help, i'm shocked the israelis weren't prepared for this. how could washington be more prepared than the israelis for what's going on with hamas? we're not talking about al-qaeda, islamic state, even a country like iran, we're talking about hamas. this has been israel's main adversary for decades. so, i just find it puzzling that people are looking to the united states to have better intelligence than the israelis, at least on this particular group. what does the u.s. do next? i think we pulled all the stops. we share everything we have, and we're gonna lean in on the technologies that we bring to bear, signals intelligence, human intelligence, networks. as norman mentioned, multi into operation here. this is not gonna be easy, by

any stretch -- we're talking about urban warfare, tunnels, built under gaza, clearly, hamas will be preparing for the response here. i think we're in for a very, very uncomfortable 24 to 48 hours. especially when we think about the hostages. >> there is two parts to whatever israel does right now in response. one is the securing. it does israel due to return either deterrence or return this chaos, summer is really officials are calling for that right now to destroy and destroy is that even a possible scenario right now militarily. is that something that once israel makes that decision, it could potentially do. as i mentioned before, i've covered multiple wars which jewelry -- noticed airstrikes, but including a land invasion.

only for them to come out after a couple days, or couple of weeks, declaring the victory saying hamas capacities have been decimated. we still find ourselves year after year with this growing threat. >> thank, you as a great question. i would like to respond very briefly to my friend colin's comments. regarding the united states. it is the absolute responsibility of the united states to protect americans abroad. there are hundreds of thousands of americans in israel. we don't cede responsibility for any threat to any other partner. that doesn't mean there is no part of that might have best eyes on the target. but we would work with them. the issue is to what intelligence material we would share with the israelis? it can be difficult. we have an extremely close relationship with israel is. and we already share a vast amount of information with them. it can be difficult to imagine that we have a cigar box somewhere that says material wouldn't share with israel because we didn't think was ready. we do may have some technical capacity, some satellite work,

or other work, that we could offer to augment israeli capabilities. on specific operational machines, and we could bring analytical firepower to the table to allow them to better sort through the vast amount of information. regarding what happens next, we are in the early days of what's likely along event. this is a tectonic issue. this isn't just a 9/11 event in terms of the crisis it brings, but 9/11 had ripples in the united states that we feel to this very day. the domestic impact on israeli politics, the regional politics, i think it's gonna be difficult to determine, in the near term, but u.s. policy makers, as i, say are gonna be focused heavily on what's happening in the region. and in israel, and we'll be focusing two minutes minimize the loss of, life to include a loss of life of palestinians in the coming days. >> very important points on all fronts. actually, i want to talk to both of you, specifically, about that. just after, break it to squeeze in a quick break, cohen in norman, and then come back. and continue the conversation. please, go anywhere. please, go anywhere.

ith hiv and i'm on cabenuva. it helps keep me undetectable. for adults who are undetectable, cabenuva is the only complete, long-acting hiv treatment you can get every other month. cabenuva is two injections, given by my healthcare provider, every other month. it's really nice not to have to rush home and take a daily hiv pill. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic to its ingredients or if you taking certain medicines, which may interact with cabenuva. serious side effects include allergic reactions post-injection reactions, liver problems, and depression. if you have a rash and other allergic reaction symptoms, stop cabenuva and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have liver problems or mental health concerns, and if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. some of the most common side effects include injection-site reactions, fever, and tiredness. if you switch to cabenuva, attend all treatment appointments. ready to treat your hiv in a different way? ask your doctor about every-other-month cabenuva. every other month, and i'm good to go. life, diabetes.

each day is a unique blend of going, doing, and living. glucerna protein smart with 30 grams of protein to help keep you moving. uniquely designed with carbsteady to help manage blood sugar response. glucerna, bring on the day. this october 10th and 11th, prime big deal days give prime members exclusive access to two days of big savings. which means, you're kind of a big deal. prime big deal days, october 10th and 11th. only for prime members. - i got the cabin for three days. it's gonna be sweet! october 10th and 11th. what? i'm 12 hours short. - have a fun weekend. - ♪ unnecessary action hero! unnecessary. ♪ - was that necessary? - no. neither is a blown weekend. with paycom, employees do their own payroll

so you can fix problems before they become problems. - hmm! get paycom and make the unnecessary, unnecessary. - see you down the line. ♪ tourists tourists that turn into scientists. tourists taking photos that are analyzed by ai. let's continue the conversation, so researchers can help life underwater flourish. ♪

now with the -- norman -- , over 200 israelis killed, the gaza health ministry says 232 palestinians killed in gaza, in those israeli airstrikes, that came after. colin, the comparison that has been made, from the surprise element of this, and the intelligence failure, is obviously 9/11, but i want to talk about how we responded to 9/11, and the lessons learned from that, and whether or not this could be the way that israel responds. in our case, we were going after osama bin laden, and al-qaeda. in the case of israel, they are going after a militant organization, that is deeply embedded into the fabric of palestinian society, certainly in the gaza strip. how does that complicate how israel responds, with going after the militant wing, and whether or not they are going to make that distinction now, as they, i assume, continuing

escalate operations, in the territory? >> it's a great question, and i have been seeing the 9/11 comparisons all day. and i have to admit, initially i thought it wasn't the best analogy, and as i have track this throughout the day, i think it actually is quite a good fit. for me, the lesson i draw is, how does israel respond to this without doing with the united states did out in the aftermath of 9/11, which is over committee. we kind of walk into the trap -- and did exactly that he wanted to, which is launch multiple invasions and get bob down and fighting counter surge or -- the goal was to bleed us dry, right, to bankrupt us and kill our soldiers. so, what can the israelis do differently now, then they have done in the multiple operations they've launched against palestinian militants, over the years? whether that's operation -- in 2008, 2009, operation pillar of defense 2012, -- protective edge in 2014,

guarding of the walls, 2021, right. the israelis have been, as they call it, mowing the grass, for a long time. how do they kind of right size, this and calibrated in a way, where they can go after hamas, and intend to weaken the group, but not get sucked into a longer term, drawn out conflict, that likely involves iran? that is going to be the key question here. >> yeah, and for our viewers who are seeing that image in left side of the screen, that is a live picture of gaza city in the gaza strip, you can probably hear, they're in the faint background, would appear to be explosions, an indication that operations are ongoing. both from the israeli side, as well as hamas rockets being launched from the strip, into israel proper. we know that the israeli minister had announced, the ever israeli minister, who is responsible for the delivery of electricity into the gaza strip, which israel does provide to some portions of the territory, announced earlier today that electricity would be cut off. israel provides the bulk of electricity to gazans, in the

territory. egypt does provide the others, to the southern part of the territory. normandy, as was mentioned earlier in the conversation by calling, which i thought was an important point about the impact this might have come on the political dynamics inside israel. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu had always positioned himself, if you will, as the best choice for israelis, when it came to safety and security. in fact, he ran a campaign ad against his opponents, basically saying that these types of attacks could never happen under a government that he leads, because he is the most committed israeli prime minister, to its security. how significant of a setback is this, for him, and for his specific administration? -- [interpreter] >> if the prime minister netanyahu and it's going to have to show himself fit to be pretty tough on this issue. israel is going to have a new generation, that is seeing something the previous

generation lasted 1973, hundreds of israelis are dead, more than 1000 wounded. 22 active fire sites in israel today, 53, 54 hostages spread into gaza. the political weight of public opinion, will make it very difficult for him to do anything but react, very harshly, against gaza. and, that is going to be difficult, because there are no specific military targets, just a massive number of civilian areas, with terrorist on claims. within israel itself, there has been also some unusual movement, where the -- the opposition leader, has offered to form a national unity government, temporarily, to fight this issue. is that a ladder to get netanyahu away from his hard-line allies? >> probably not, but i think we should understand, this is a shifting situation. and again, we are in the very early hours, and i doubt even prime minister netanyahu has -- >> if we were looking at this

as co--centric circles, norman. and obviously, being the most inner circle is being what is happening right now, in gaza. if you are a u.s. intelligence official, trying to assess where this configuration can ultimately lead to, how far does this go? i mean, we know that egypt's will have a peace treaty, jordan and israel have a peace treaty. the uae, certainly morocco, the countries that matter the most to the vicinity, immediately, with the exception of syria and lebanon and iran. >> well, all of that is correct, and i think we also need to point out that the drivers for regional integration have not gone away. saudi arabia, the emirates, they want a relationship that involves the geography of israel, to establish a connection with europe. the palestinian issue will go to the forefront, in negotiations on the u.s. saudi israel issue. and, coming up with some sort of a deal, that provides better economic gains for the

palestinians, there will be likely the direction we will head in. the problem is that we are facing, if that israel has 53 hostages, and getting those hostages back is going to be a long term, complicated effort. and the public will support the harshest measures, against hamas, to return these innocent civilians, and military officials. >> colin, final question to you, about the calculation that netanyahu had made. which was, he felt, as he came into office, to change the equation, from trying to solve the palestinian issue first, and then going out to get broader peace with the arab world, to trying to go out and get broader peace with the arab world, to come back and get these, or force peace upon the palestinians. has that changed, as a result of today? >> well, we will have to see, but it definitely puts the saudis in a really difficult spot, right. if things were going smoothly, and moving along, and we actually had a intel brief on friday, about this very issue. you know, the palestinians have been backburnered, and this is

a checkmate to them, right. they won't be ignored, but putting this as an issue back on the table, for the quote end quote arab street, throughout the region. and i think those folks that are calling the shots in riyadh, i don't think long and hard about where they stand here. and i think norman is right, they do want a deal with israel, they do want to move forward. but, what about the palestinians? they can't simply be left on the sideline, but we're gonna continue to see instances like this, going forward. >> yeah, a reminder that you -- when you're dealing with the broader middle east. gentlemen, thank you both, i greatly free seat or insights, and analysis. colin clark, norman -- thank you for your time, and what has been a long and difficult day. coming, up i will speak to democratic congressman -- , a member of the house intelligence committee, about all that has transpired today, stay with us. stay with us that's why i switched to dovato. dovato is a complete hiv treatment for some adults. no other complete hiv pill uses fewer medicines to help keep you undetectable

than dovato. detect this: most hiv pills contain 3 or 4 medicines. dovato is as effective with just 2. if you have hepatitis b, don't stop dovato without talking to your doctor. don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients or taking dofetilide. this can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. if you have a rash or allergic reaction symptoms, stop dovato and get medical help right away. serious or life-threatening lactic acid buildup and liver problems can occur. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems or if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. dovato may harm an unborn baby. most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. detect this: i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. ask your doctor about switching to dovato.

she found it. the feeling of finding the psoriasis treatment she's been looking for. sotyktu is the first-of-its-kind, once-daily pill for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis... for the chance at clear or almost clear skin. it's like the feeling of finding that outfit psoriasis

tried to hide from you. or finding your swimsuit is ready for primetime. dad! once-daily sotyktu is proven to get more people clearer skin than the leading pill. don't take if you're allergic to sotyktu; serious reactions can occur. sotyktu can lower your ability to fight infections including tb. serious infections, cancers including lymphoma, muscle problems, and changes in certain labs have occurred. tell your doctor if you have an infection, liver or kidney problems, high triglycerides, or had a vaccine or plan to. sotyktu is a tyk2 inhibitor. tyk2 is part of the jak family. it's not known if sotyktu has the same risks as jak inhibitors. find what plaque psoriasis has been hiding. ask your dermatologist about sotyktu for clearer skin. so clearly you. sotyktu. nbc news reports that the u.s.

is discussing enhancing its intelligence, sharing with the israelis to support the israeli government, during the ongoing conflict of hamas, according to a u.s. official and source similar with the discussions. joining me now is democratic congressman -- of illinois. he is a member of the house intelligence committee. congressman, thank you so much for making time for us. so, can you tell us, have you been briefed on what has happened, inside both israel and the gaza strip, as of this evening? do you have any updates as you can share with, us on what we have learned in terms of the scale and scope of this operation? >> well, we are actually

getting a full scale briefing, in a classified setting, and in the security facilities in washington. right now, we are basically receiving more of the unclassified information, that is accessible to everybody at this point. >> we have been hearing the comments, in the reporting, to suggest that there may be capabilities that united states, has that i can share with its israeli counterparts. can you shed any light on what that might be, and how soon that might be shared, with the israelis? >> i think that it is being shared right now. i think that this is something that is a top priority for u.s. officials. look ayman, i think your viewers and you know, extremely well, the urgency of a locating, and getting those hostages back, from gaza strip. i think that is priority number one. there is tremendous pressure on the prime minister, to respond right now. but at the same time, he and his government have to be

thinking very carefully, about how any operation would impact the welfare of those hostages. and, so i think priority one is that. i think a big second priority, is trying to prevent any further attacks, especially from other terrorist groups, iran-backed groups like hezbollah in the north. and of course, trying to figure out whether iran had a hand in any of this. >> how do you go about assessing that? i mean, what do you think the administration should be doing right now, in assessing whether or not iran had any specific role in this. but more importantly, the points that you raised, which is the decision-making process within israel. to not jeopardize the safety of those taken inside gaza, or the palestinians that are inside gaza. or, at the same time, further operations from militant groups, against israel? >> well amen, these are incredibly complicated questions. i think that, in past scenarios,

our analysts to an excellent job, of going back, to try to figure out what was missed, in the collection, that might have given clues, as to what we saw today. but, and then trying to look forward, to see if what they had learned could be applied to the collection happening right now, to see if we could plug any holes, and maybe foreshadow or foresee what's coming. but this is all a very time intensive endeavor, on top of all of that. i am sure that our excellent partners and allies and friends across the region, and around the world, are being enlisted to help in this effort. because, at this point, i think everybody is thinking very hard, about what happened today, and preventing it from happening again. i think most countries, our friends partners and allies, were shocked by what happened,

and stand solidly with israel, as it tries to respond. >> you say to prevent something like this from happening again. i, mean is there a chance that we can return to the status quo? and if not, what fundamentally has to change? what do you think, as a member of the u.s. congress, which gives billions of dollars in aid to israel, and supports the palestinian authority. and part of the american government, which is heavily invested in this conflict. what do you think fundamentally needs to change, so suddenly this doesn't happen again? >> well look, as you know, the immediate endeavor, the immediate task at hand is to deal with what is transpiring, in realtime, on the ground. but in the medium and long term, we have to recognize that what the terrorists, in part we're trying to do, was to destroy any chance of a lasting peace agreement, that is being fashioned among the different parties. they are deathly afraid of the united states brokering an

agreement with the saudis, and israel, and the palestinians. especially in the west bank, and we can't let them thwart those efforts. so i think that although today, we have to be one hunted percent laser focused on dealing with the hostages, dealing with the terrorists, cleansing israel of these terrorists, and preventing further attacks. in the medium and long term, we have to return to the project of bringing true stability, in that area. >> so, just so i try to understand a clear, do you believe that part of the reason hamas carried out today's attack, was to thwart a possible saudi israeli peace deal? >> i believe so. i haven't seen evidence, or communication evidence of communications to that extent. and, i'll be looking for that, when i go back to washington d.c.. but, i think the main point is that, hamas has been on the out, as you know, for a long time,

ever since israel left the gaza strip, a very long time ago. they have been further isolated, they have become very much a proxy of the iranians. and, as you also know, many players in the region want to try to come together, in a peace agreement, in part to deal with the threats posed by the iranians. and so, it would not be a surprise, or a stretch to think that hamas would fear any kind of lasting peace deal, that the americans are brokering in the region, between these other parties. >> so when you look at it from an intelligence perspective, and israeli officials have talked about the operations they have carried out, going as far back as 2008, in operation -- again in, 2012, 2014, and more recently 2021. those operations, at the time, israel described them as being successful, for having weakened and destroyed hamas. but, as we can clearly see from today, that is not the case. so i guess, what has to be done,

to change that dynamic? what changes, in order to prevent something like this from happening again. if hamas is just getting stronger, year after year, despite israel going in and, as they say, mowing the lawn? >> well you know obviously, weeds have grown in that long. and i think that at this point, we have to probably go back and figure out what did we miss, as we were trying to gather intelligence about hamas? what was it that we were able to marshal, in terms of resources, as well as from whom did they get these resources? and then, try to plug those holes as best as we can. but until we get the answer to those first questions, it's hard to determine exactly what the next steps are, to prevent this from happening again, with regard to hamas. >> all right, congressman -- of illinois, thank you so much, i graciously appreciate your time. up next, we are going to examine the conditions that led up to this unprecedented strike, on israel, stay with us.

on israel, stay with us. oh. [dog barks] no it's just a bunny! only pay for what you need. ♪liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.♪ are you tired of clean clothes that just don't smell clean? only pay for what you need. downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters keep your laundry smelling fresh waaaay longer than detergent alone. if you want laundry to smell fresh for weeks, make sure you have downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters.

at first, i used better than bouillon for broth. and then stir fry... sauces... even marinades! and with all the varieties... organic... reduced sodium... and now the culinary collection... ... it's like the deliciousness never ends! make everything better with better than bouillon! in a statement, national security council spokesperson adrian watson says the u.s. unequivocally condemns the unprovoked attacks, and stands firmly with the government and people of israel. the secretary of state, anthony blinken, shared a similar statement, noting that the u.s. condemns the appalling attacks by hamas terrorists, against israel, including civilians and civilian communities. let's bring into the conversation, martin fletcher, former nbc news correspondent, and bureau chief in tel aviv,

so knows the region extremely well. martin, it's great to see you, and i'm sorry that it is on this sad day. but you know, here we are again, talking about what has happened, and my first question to you is, what are the conditions that led to this moment in time? >> that's a very, that's a big question. we have like 75 years of israel's existence, and they've been struggling with the palestinians the whole time. look, hamas has been very clear, and it has done -- to any peace process with israel. they want to destroy israel, that is in the hamas charter, we know that very. well and they have been building up, attacking israel, how many times, when you went through the dates recently. i think like five times, there have been five many conflicts, many wars between israel and hamas, over the last 15 years. this, of course, blows everything else out of the water, because it is so huge.

it is a complete change in tactics, it's a brilliant, frankly, a brilliant military operation by hamas, coordinating air, land, sea, artillery, rocket fire against israel. so, it has been building for a long time, something happened we don't know yet why hamas decided this was the time for such a launch, such a really make-or-break operation against israel, but they certainly took israel by surprise. and, they -- because this has been building for a very long time. >> when you look at, and you certainly have the historical perspective of comparing it to 1973, and the surprise attack that happened then. but that was a conventional war, with the most powerful, at the time, the most powerful arab country, the egyptian military, and the syrians attacking both the cyanide peninsula, and the golan heights, which were at the time under israeli control. the element of surprise, has to be psychologically defeating for israel, just to be able to

live through today, and see what has happened, this and that is going to reverberate, for years to come, in the same way that 1973 shot israel, for decades. >> absolutely. i mean, this is a complete destruction of israel's so-called concept, the conception of how to deal with the palestinians, and how to deal with hamas and gaza. this completely shatters it, they've got to start from scratch. the comparison with 1973 is really interesting. actually, i was in israel, as a news camera man, when they were attacked by syria and egypt, on the -- 1973. yes, it was a surprise, but actually, it wasn't a complete surprise. because israel, at that time, had the intelligence information, they just interpreted it wrongly. this time, it appears there was no intelligence information at all. the intelligence chiefs, were taken by surprise, that's what we know now, that may change

the next few days, or when there's a real examination of what actually happened. but that question of surprise, completely shatters israel's, the concept of israel being in vulnerable. and the -- four arabs in the west bank, and inside israel, arabs in syria, era bissen, lebanon. the core for them all to rise against israel, on the one hand it hasn't really happened, yet. but, it does emphasize israel's vulnerability. >> and speaking of going forward, i just wanted to get your thoughts. i mean, you and i have been, we have been on the ground in gaza many times, and we have covered these, as you said, these kind of by comparison to this, i want to be clear by comparison to this, small scale wars. not a full blown war. but, what options does israel really have right now? i mean, militarily speaking. because on one hand, they have eliminated, and assassinated the most senior members of hamas's political wing, spiritual leaders --

. they've assassinated senior military commanders at the -- end islamic jihad officials. they have done, and they also as we saw in 2014, and in 2008, gone into gaza and invaded gaza. so, what can they do now, that would produce a different outcome, from what we have seen over the past 15 years? >> well, you put your finger on it, produce a different outcome. look, israel has two choices right now, really. which is to say, okay, we need a deal with hamas one way or the other, and negotiate. or, we've got to break them. and israel, at each time, has always said we're going to break, they were going to destroy them, we have the capability, we are going to bring security to our people. it hasn't worked, every couple of years there's been another outbreak of fighting. this time, from what i am being told, they will go in with all of their strength. they will destroy any area where hamas has training facilities, weapons facilities,

headquarters and administration. they say they're going to destroy the place. and i think, when asked take them at their word for the time being. israel has warned the population of gaza city, to leave town. that is a lot of people, and they say they are going to continue with their airstrikes, and destroy any hamas installation. the question is, will they go in on the ground? and that is always the question. and, they may go in briefly. you know, the problem of course now, is the optics of it. what do you do with at least 50, we don't know how many are there. as they say it's a substantial number. but probably, it's over 50 hostages taken. what do you do, do you risk their lives? and i know -- that has a doctrine, which it turns out when they destroy the southern suburbs of beirut, when they were fighting the palestinians there, they will go in, and they will destroy the place. that's what they say they are going to do.

and frankly, i think, i take them at their word. personally, what happened to the hostages, they may become victims we don't know? >> we're going to have to wait and see. martin, thank you as always, it's good to see you, appreciate your insights as always. stick around, we're gonna have more breaking news coverage, at the top of the hour. and older protect against rsv with arexvy. arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. i chose arexvy. rsv? make it arexvy.

known as a loving parent. i chose arexvy. known for lessons that matter. known for lessons that matter. known for being a free spirit. no one wants to be known for cancer, but a treatment can be. keytruda is known to treat cancer, fda-approved for 16 types of cancer. one of those cancers is advanced nonsquamous, non-small cell lung cancer, where keytruda is approved to be used with certain chemotherapies as your first treatment if you do not have an abnormal "egfr" or "alk" gene. keytruda can cause your immune system to attack healthy parts of your body during or after treatment. this may be severe and lead to death. see your doctor right away if you have cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, diarrhea, severe stomach pain, severe nausea or vomiting,

headache, light sensitivity, eye problems, irregular heartbeat, extreme tiredness, constipation, dizziness or fainting, changes in appetite, thirst, or urine, confusion, memory problems, muscle pain or weakness, fever, rash, itching, or flushing. there may be other side effects. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions, including immune system problems, if you've had or plan to have an organ or stem cell transplant, received chest radiation or have a nervous system problem. depending on the type of cancer, keytruda may be used alone or in combination with other treatments, and is also being studied in hundreds of clinical trials, exploring ways to treat even more types of cancer. it's tru. keytruda from merck. see all the types of cancer keytruda is known for at keytruda.com and ask your doctor if keytruda could be right for you.