>> erin mclaughlin leading us off tonight. erin, thank you. >>> we want to turn to some late-breaking news about the 2024 republican primary another state moving to remove former president trump from the ballot let's get right over to steve patterson for the latest >> reporter: tom, tonight, it was maine's democratic secretary of state deciding that former president donald trump should be constitutionally ineligible to appear on the state's presidential primary ballot in the 34-page decision, she wrote that trump's role in the january 6th attack violated section 3 of the 14th amendment her office says the decision won't be enforced until the courts weigh in. a spokesperson for the trump campaign already saying they will file a challenge. now back to tom in new york >>> we want to head overseas now to israel's surprising admission, taking fault for one of the deadliest strikes in gaza of this war and there are new disturbing details on the plight of hamas' hostages here's josh lederman >> reporter: tonight, in a rare move, israe

>> erin mclaughlin leading us off tonight. erin, thank you. >>> we want to head oversees now to israel's surprising admission, taking fault for one of the deadliest strikes in gaza of this war. and there are new disturbing details on the plight of hamas' hostages. here's josh lederman. >> reporter: tonight, in a rare move, israel's military admitting serious mistakes. acknowledging a christmas eve strike on a central gaza refugee camp unnecessarily killed civilians. israel saying its fighter jets were targeting hamas sites, but also struck nearby buildings, adding the idf regrets the harm to uninvolved individuals. the idf also concluding an investigation into how israeli troops mistakenly killed three hostages this month, saying their deaths could have been prevented. a spokesman saying, we are responsible for what happened. meanwhile, another american family is grieving tonight. 70-year-old judy weinstein, a u.s. citizen, was believed to be held hostage in gaza. but her kibbutz announced she was killed in the october 7th terr

say to create more space for them to be able to respond to any security incidents tom. >> okay, erin mclaughlink you for that. >>> we're back in a moment with the university chancellor fired for making adult videos with his wife and posting them on the internet why he tells us he should have his job back erative colitis symptoms are stopping you in your tracks... choose stelara® from the start... and move toward relief after the first dose... with injections every two months. stelara® may increase your risk of infections, some serious, and cancer. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms, sores, new skin growths, have had cancer, or if you need a vaccine. pres, a rare, potentially fatal brain condition, may be possible. some serious allergic reactions and lung inflammation can occur. feel unstoppable. ask your doctor how lasting remission can start with stelara®. janssen can help you explore cost support options. oooohhh, it is cold outside time to protect your vehichle from winters wrath of course the hot sun can be tough on vehicles too

war rages on now two weeks after dozens of premature babies were evacuated from the war zone erin mclaughlin with an update on the mission to save their lives. >> reporter: nora albana can't take her eyes off her little girl >> she's beautiful >> reporter: her name is leanne, she tells us a moment this new mother once feared impossible now overwhelming >> that was your first time touching your daughter >> reporter: "yes. i'm very happy," she says nora thought she might not ever see leanne and her twin sister again. the girls were among some 39 babies separated from their families as violence engulfed the al shifa hospital >> rpg >> reporter: israel the u.s. and european union allege hamas used hospitals to conceal its military operations and patients as human shields, allegations hamas denies days into the siege doctors say the babies began to die these images of the sick babies emerged from al shifa. while at the evacuated al nasr hospital this footage of the remains of babies left behind. the hamas-run health ministry says they were prevented from evacuating them. israel slamming that as f

erin mclaughlin tonight from times square. >> two, one, happy new year. >> reporter: tonight times squareready to ring in the new year. city officials insist security is all set to handle a crowd in the hundreds of thousands. >> there are no specific threats to the city. >> reporter: even so, with thousands of officers deployed, they say they're expanding the zone to be blocked off. >> we will be out here with our k-9s, our horsebacks, our drones, our helicopters, our boats. >> reporter: this year's ball drop amidst increasing tension over the israel-hamas war. protesters taking aim at new york's holiday season having already interrupted the city's christmas celebrations and thanksgiving parade. >> we're prepared for them at any number. >> reporter: tonight overseas the fbi revealing they've arrested a man from new jersey, following the october 7th terror attack in israel, they alleged the 23-year-old tried to join a known foreign terror organization to attack the united states. this following last year's times square machete attack targeting two police on new year's eve. tonight, law enf

erin mclaughlin, nbc news, cairo. >>> all right. we'll take a break. coming up, the small town spirit that saved a store that is so much more than groceries. leukemia, calquence helps you do the fighting. and you can do the exploring. you can do the splashing... ...the sightseeing... ...and the playing. calquence is an oral targeted therapy for cll. more patients begin with calquence than any treatment of its kind, and calquence is proven to work better than chemoimmunotherapy in patients with previously untreated cll. calquence may cause serious side effects, which may lead to death. these include serious infections with fever, chills, or flu-like symptoms; and bleeding problems that may increase with blood thinners. decreased blood counts are common and can be severe. new cancers have happened, including skin cancers. heart rhythm problems with fast or irregular heartbeat, dizziness, feeling faint, chest discomfort, or shortness of breath, have happened. tell your doctor if you have bleeding, heart rhythm, or liver problems; infection, or if you are

erin mclaughlin joins us now from tel aviv. let's start with what you have heard in the last few hours on the ground in israel. an israeli military spokesperson spoke not long ago, right? what did he have to say about the restart in fighting? >> well, he not only announced the resumption of military operations, but he also said in compliance with international law the israeli military would be publishing safe zones, places where palestinians can go in an event of further violence, which seemingly they're doing under pressure from the united states. yesterday the u.s. secretary of state antony blinken was in the region calling on israel to do more to protect civilians in the fighting. today we saw this intense bombardment play out in northern gaza where most of the fighting has been concentrated in the first days of the war. but also in southern gaza residents telling nbc news the bombs are dropping every 10 to 15 hours. leaflets were dropped on the city warning people there to evacuate even further south to rafa. we heard from

. >> erin mclaughlin, thank you. >>> i want to bring in the former director of the hostage recovery forhe united states government, christopher o'leary to talk more about what is happening on the ground in gaza and this continuing israel-hamas conflict. thank you for joining us on this. the last hour i spoke with udi goran. i want to play what he said about the resumption of the war and the worries he has for his cousin's safety. >> today we've heard because of the people that got back, we've heard that at least four more people that were taken to gaza alive are confirmed dead, and that means that every day, including today, including right now when we're talking, my cousin's life is in danger. >> christopher, what do you make of what this resumption of war means for the 100 plus hostages that are still being held in gaza, for their safety? >> i have real concerns on a number of levels. yes, for their safety, you know, this unbridled urban assault that the u.s. has been trying to sway israel away from, they have gone back to t and frankly it could potentially put the hostages in danger,

erin mclaughlin shows us more. >> reporter: this morning, times square ready to ring in the new year. city officials insist security is set to handle a crowd in the hundreds of thousands. >> there are no specific threats to the city. >> reporter: even so, with thousands of officers deployed, they say they are expanding the zones. >> we are here with the k-9s and drones and helicopters and boats. >> reporter: the ball drop amid tension over the israel-hamas war. protesters taking aim at new york's holiday season having already interrupted the christmas celebrations and thanksgiving parade. >> we're prepared for anything. >> reporter: the fbi arrests one already. a 23-year-old new jersey man. this following the machete attack last year. law enforcement this year is worried about the lone wolf this year. >> someone sitting alone in their basement watching videos and getting filled with hate and decides today's the day. >> reporter: across the country, in vegas, a low altitude helicopter buzzing over the strip checking for radioactive contamination. the large of the cities in america taki