who and what is hamas? >> hamas primarily is a social, religious, political movement. >> hamas is seen by most palestinians as part of their social fabric. there are plenty of palestinians who cannot stand hamas but they recognize that some of their neighbors, some of their family members are hamas supporters. hamas has several different aspects to it. it certainly does have a military wing, but it also has a political wing. it has social services. it sees itself as a movement. it calls itself the islamic movement and the movement is a comprehensive one. >> hamas is a nationalist movement that's committed to the notion of armed struggle for the liberation of palestine. out of all the different palestinian factions that exist hamas is the only party that has an organized military and a very well resourced military force. what that means is that for many palestinians hamas is the only party that can actually defend palestinian civilians against israeli aggression. >> that's the reality. that is how many pales

to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. to hamas. >> that is the story. whatever anyone tries to spin and say they did not mean to or that is just nonsense because the dead bodies of the israelis -- tell the story. >> when we talk about tactics, we have new reporting tonight, the humanitarian group human rights watch is accusing israel of using white phosphorus, not just based on videos reported in lebanon and gaza. the idf has denied the sinker accusations made ag

support for hamas was dwindling and hamas wasn't popular at all. people weren't happy with the way hamas was running the gaza strip. weren't happy with the siege and happening with their lives which was miserable as a result of the siege. but following the attacks, the severe intense attacks the palestinians are united. we don't think of hamas. i'm never, ever supporting hamas in my life. but as i'm talking to you, hamas is part of the social fiber because we're all under attack. support for hamas was dwindling thanks to israeli. support for hamas is sky high now because of the severity of the crimes that the israelis are committing. not because of the popularity of hamas. when they hit us in every aspect of our lives, palestinians get united and don't think of hamas but of popular front or jihad, whatever, they think of their suffering. >> that was mishir, elfara. we're losing a connection. we'll have to leave that there for now. he was in gaza. we'll take a break and be right back. ♪. ♪. . >>> the israeli military said five hours left of a window

topple hamas, collapsed hamas.t sounds good, especially when the blood is boiling and israel, after what happened on saturday, 1000 israelis massacred. people in their homes, children, men, women, elderly, taken to the gaza strip and held hostage by this ices like organization, a terrorist group. but, on the other hand, what does that mean to topple hamas? israel is going to go into gaza, take over the entire place? i don't know if that is the option. what we are talking about is a complete degrading of hamas capabilities. israel has to go in, there's only so much can do from the air, john. you have to go house to house. you have to capture the people, you have to kill their terrorists, you have to destroy their infrastructure, we have to take away the sophisticated iranian arms. they're supported by iran. all of this is needed, you can only do so much from the air and it's going to be painful for both sides, but this was a war that was forced and compelled upon israel. >> prime minister benjamin netanyahu, regardl

it wants to get rid of hamas. hamas is dug in. gaza is fortified. and there are all these hostages so how do you carry out regime change in that situation >> all right richard engel, thank you for that >>> israel is calling up hundreds of thousands of reservists as the military appears to be mobilizing for a large-scale ground offensive. but as raf sanchez reports, efforts to get more than 100 hostages back will make it all the more complex. >> reporter: after being caught off guard by the worst surprise attack in 50 years, now comes an even bigger challenge for israel a potential all-out invasion of gaza the israel defense forces tonight pounding the strip from the air but all signs point to a ground offensive, and soon israeli tanks massing near the gaza border and more than 300,000 reservists called up for duty >> is it really militarily feasible to invade gaza, to fight street by street, and to overthrow hamas there? >> it is possible. the question is what is the price and strategically what is the best way to carry this out >> reporter: invadin

hamas doesn't need that. the likelihood that iran and hezbollah were providing strategic guidance is extremely high and want to point out that this series of attacks, this exact series of attacks comes straight out of the hezbollah playbook. northern command of israel has been practicing and training to counter for several years now whether coming overland underground in the air they were plans by the idf to counter hezbollah plots to enter israeli territory, kill as many people as possible, take over towns and raise the hezbollah flag for that media moment, capture as many people as possible, take them back lebanon all while shooting rockets. this is out of the hezbollah playbook and it didn't happen were it was expected to happen, but this has hezbollah and iran fingerprints all over it. we will need to wait sometime before this all comes out in detail. i don't think we are going on any limb to say that hamas was talking and working with others. >> by the way -- >> traditionally, there is a tie to a relatio

he said our top goal is to defeat hamas and eliminate hamas. free the hostages. whether netanyahu was trying to create a hierarchy there or similar lip listing his priorities, i'm not sure. it certainly seemed to suggest that the penultimate goal was going to be really dealing with this hamas issue. he seems to have a new point to make tonight that he can do both at the same time. the question is whether the public here is going to believe him. we saw that video we've been discussing of the hostages that hamas has released. we don't know if they were reading a script. they seemed to suggest these two goals were mutually exclusive and they wanted to see a ses fire. we've seen netanyahu on the tour of the country trying to undo some of the damage from some of the comments he made on twitter where he blamed the israeli military and security apparatus for the intelligence failures that led to the hamas attack. he had to delete that tweet. he's been apologizing for it. it's the same military service which is responsible for freeing this private in t

cnn's sam kiley has more on the animosity between israel and hamas and how hamas' military training is more sophisticated than ever. >> reporter: slick propaganda a blatant threat published last year, hamas gunmen training on motorized paragliders. they also showed meticulous planning for fighting in builtup areas, all a historic failure of israeli intelligence. hamas videos of the start of their results from gaza were published within hours of its launch malevolently bold in execution, hamas targeting israeli machine gun nests, command posts, knocked out israeli communications and crippled command and control. they swept into israeli territory and killed at least 900 people in the worst israeli setback in 50 years. once a branch of the muslim brotherhood, hamas' sunni movement won palestinian elections in 2006 on a platform of social reform and resistance to israel. driven by corruption and incompetence, rivals launched attacks immediately against the movement which denies the right of israel to exist at all. in the end, hamas won control of gaza and its grip on the enclave of around

hamas kidnappe

is hamas, that is what hamas has become. today, the idf released a photo of i.s.i.s. flag you say was found with hamas attackers. do you believe the two terror groups, hamas and i.s.i.s. are integrated at this point? are they sharing leadership? is there a link between the two? >> i think it would be splitting hairs. we don't need to talk about that, we can see the acts that they are doing pick both groups, the aim is to kill as many civilians as possible, both groups they want to sell as much terror as possible. hamas has been controlling gaza almost 20 years, supporting the population, building their territory and all they do is terror. we saw your report in israel feeling the reverberations of the attack in gaza. it emphasizes how close to home it is for us. this is not millions of miles away, these are our neighbors, it is our backyard. we cannot have ices in the backyard with hamas and its capabilities in our backyard. our mission is to stop that. >> thank you for your time tonight. appreciate it. >>> you son of bike ride when hamas attacked within minutes, retir

let’s negotiation on the table nor from the hamas standpoint.— the hamas standpoint.the _ the hamas standpoint. let's talk about that. the way _ the hamas standpoint. let's talk about that. the way that - the hamas standpoint. let's talk about that. the way that the - about that. the way that the hostages would be freed would be through a ground incursion? i think this is the israeli _ through a ground incursion? i think this is the israeli intention - through a ground incursion? i think this is the israeli intention at - this is the israeli intention at this is the israeli intention at this point. there are actors in the region working, the egyptian central intelligence, the qatari government, i believe the turkish intelligence is involved is well in trying to work out what i would call a mini deal releasing the women and children. and they are sick prisoners, there are several elderly who need medical care in exchange for women prisoners and israeli prisons. i'm not sure that will have any traction on either side israel or hamas. but there are players like catarrh i

hamas. when israel voluntarily and unilaterally withdrew from gaza in 2005, did hamas moderate its actions? did it take the opportunity to build peace and create prosperity for the palestinian people? no. instead, it instigated war and it continued to terrorize and kill israelis. it fired tens of thousands of rockets in population centers, reining terror down on families while they slept, children while they walked to school or congregants when they gathered to pray. not only did it brazenly commit these war crime, it did so while using its own residents as human shields. that's right. across the gaza strip, hamas co-opted palestinian homes, schools, and mosques to carry out attacks on their israeli counterparts. so to those who seek moral equivalence between the two sides, i ask you -- who fires rockets out of someone's home? hamas. who uses schools and hospitals as launching sites for deadly missiles? hamas. who uses mosques as weapon depots? hamas. moreover, who denies food, water, fuel,

hamas has told people to stay. the humanitarian situation always becomes a focus in other gaza conflicts. how is it -- this time? what's being done about it? >> yeah, i think you're absolutely right, anderson. you know, if we go back to 2014, there was discussion back then about trying to provide a safe humanitarian zone. and israel's ambassador to the u.n. has been saying the same. they're working with u.n. agencies to try to create this humanitarian safe zone. but without -- you know, without housing, without tents, without food, without water, all of these things, they're just not able right now in gaza. it's not a particularly safe space. i mean, you're talking there for about hundreds of thousands of people essentially living outside and hoping it doesn't rain. and it has been raining this season. more rain is forecast to come. and they still have to eat. unless the border opens with egypt and that aid is allowed to come in or some people, palestinians in gaza, are allowed to go out into egypt, that humanitari

hamas. exactly.t is more even adding salt to the wound if the fact they are having the united nations and even sitting members of congress are magnifying this bad reporting. why is this happening? i will say it sri lanka now. -- clearly now. the mainstream media and congress have an agenda. they want to create a moral equivalent between hamas and israel. it can't be the case that israel is not the villain. israel has to be the villain. that's their world view for the middle east. they are not willing to adjust that not even when there is evidence showing the contrary this rocket came from the palestinian islamic jihad. there is evidence. intercepted phone calls and video footage from al jazeera the arab news station. >> jesse: al jazeera is more act rat than the "new york times." you remember jussie smollett. he went out for food at 2 a.m. whether it was three below zero. you knew it was a focus. it's -- hoax. the same thing with hamas. the "new york times" covered this for decades. we reported how h

as secretary blinken said, hamas wouldn't be hamas without iran.ovided them with tons of money, vast quantities of weaponry. you look at khamenei's website. he is boasting about suleimani providing hamas with weapons, with circumventing blockades to get them what they need. and then they boast on their website that suleimani was instrumental in helping hamas fight israel from moving along from fighting them with rocks to fighting them with rockets. so they are completely behind hamas. even though they're saying that they weren't behind any of the operations, any of the planning that took place. they are completely sponsors of hamas. they give them money. they give them weapons. and they support these attacks on them. they just don't want to go that far to say that they were involved in all of this. and even though the u.s. has said that there is no smoking gun that iran was involved in these attacks, they have said over and over again that iran was certainly complicit in these. and you can see why, katy. >> ali arouzi, thank you very much. one more

it true, hamas is terrible. comparing hamas to isis is very apt, but hamas is the subsidiary.mpany it is tehran. mark: what do you make of fact that egyptians will not open major passageway for civilians to leave, that hamas really, the muslim brother hood of palestine, that hamas is do going to sincist -- to insist, t. >> what to you make of that? >> mark, you raised such an important point, we focus on iran as sponsor of hamas, and hezbollah and islamic jihad that is true. they are undermining and killing americans and take down the united states hamas is part of the muslim brotherhood network, they operate a massive information partnering with qatar, and turkey. why do we suddenly have united nations and al jazeera and disinformation out about how, really the crime of humanity is the israelis not hamas after they just butchered children and women. they have the appara apparatus to do so, hamas using human shields, that is a war crime, no one is calling out war crimes already in progress by hamas, not massacre but massacre of palestinian people has about created by hamas, ev

cnn is not going to show the hamas video. but the prime minister's office did confirm the identities of the three women as alana and daniel and ramon, we learned a heartbreaking update today about another victim of hamas that we told you about. the israeli government said shanny luke, a german israeli woman who was kidnapped by hamas on october 7th from the nova music festival, she has been confirmed killed. shanny was at the nova music festival in southern israel where young people had gathered to celebrate music and peace when hamas attacked. her body was seen on video, hamas video after the attack. she was seemingly unconscience in the back of a hamas truck being driven into gaza. we're going to show you the video at her family's request and it is graphic. her mother gave cnn permission to air the video. she wants to show the world the brutality of hamas. we are blurring the image of her seemingly unconscience naked body. a source familiar with the identification of shanny's remains told me that the discovery of a fragment

and as a result of that, hamas and perhaps some of hamas' sponsors, but certainly hamas, decided, we're going to burn the house down. and this is their way of trying to burn the house down. so part of what's going on here is that you have had a kind of power vacuum, which all kinds of people have been jockeying for influence and hamas is watching all of this. and they're playing the card they have, which is the most brutal, sadistic card, but that's -- it's there to get their attention. >> no question about it. and we were talking with hadas gold, who just left jerusalem, she was our jerusalem correspondent there for several years. and she said that when you talk to israelis, they view this as -- many of them view this as israel's 9/11. and they feel this deep down in their bones. and i have to think as we were looking at our images coming out of gaza earlier today, the intense shelling that has taken place and those buildings that have been leveled, the hospitals getting filled with children. now they feel like the victims in all of this, as well. it's hard to see how we aren't going t

mi; unprecedented attack on israel by hamas. g ., ~ ., ., hamas. of eve one hamas. my reaction like that of everyone else _ hamas. my reaction like that of everyone else is _ hamas. my reaction like that of everyone else is it _ hamas. my reaction like that of everyone else is it is _ hamas. my reaction like that of everyone else is it is a - hamas. my reaction like that of| everyone else is it is a complete surprise but not a complete surprise. what is not at all a surprise. what is not at all a surprise is that there was an escalation, i would say over the last number of months, all of us have been expecting some sort of an escalation with gaza and hamas because we know from the past there have been five or six operations depending on if you count the smaller or bigger ones and nothing in the political conditions that would have prevented them have changed so we are in an ongoing active military conflict and occupation. gaza has been under siege for 16 years, there is no political process, the palestinian leadership has been very undermined and t

and hamas hardware is no match.he terrorist weapon of choice, kasa.m. rockets. these garage-built rockets are inaccurate assembled with cheap is did you say troll piping and homemade rocket fuel. the propaganda machines boasts of rockets from water pipes. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ . >> jesse:. >> jesse: hamas would rather murder in israeli with a missile than provide clean drinking water to their pushability israel's iron dome missile defense system is a trusted layer of protection. hamas must rely on gorilla warfare to survive. boosted by an arsenal of heavy machine guns, rocket propelled grenades, long range sniper rifles and their own version of a stinger. hamas will also be leaning in with their kamikaze drone named after the dead al qaeda leader. these could present a challenge. ♪ ♪ >> jesse: now israel's arsenal is state of the art. their kiffer fighter jets are equivalent to american f-35 which they're also flexing a fleet of as well as multi million dollars barack tanks which feature ai technology built to survive hamas sting

that is a change in hamas's position. it shows that they are under military pressure and reacting to it as well. >> richard engel, thank you. i'm going to ask you to stay on the line for a minute while we bring in jeremy bash, former chief of staff at both the cia and department of defense and an nbc news analyst. jeremy, this is obviously very clearly a moment of de-escalation with the release of these two hostages. can it last? >> if it's a moment of de-escalation, hallie, i think it's a very small and tiny moment. it's certainly hopeful for this family. it's going to be a joyous reunification for judith and natalie with their loved ones who have been so concerned about them, but there are 200 hostages, including as many as 13 americans and someone like hersch goldberg, who's grievously wounded. he's got chicago roots. he's an american. these are families that are deeply concerned about the welfare of these hostages. i think two is great, and every life is precious, but the enormity of this hostage crisis really means t

so, if hamas wins, if hamas_ be in danger. so, if hamas wins, if hamas loses— be in danger.amas loses and is defeated then the forces _ hamas loses and is defeated then the forces of— hamas loses and is defeated then the forces of civilisation when. that is why there's — forces of civilisation when. that is why there's battle is not merely our own, _ why there's battle is not merely our own. it _ why there's battle is not merely our own. it is _ why there's battle is not merely our own, it is your apartment battle, it is america's— own, it is your apartment battle, it is america's battle, civilisation's battle, — is america's battle, civilisation's battle, it— is america's battle, civilisation's battle, it is— is america's battle, civilisation's battle, it is the battle for the heart — battle, it is the battle for the heart and soul of the middle east. i thihk_ heart and soul of the middle east. i think many— heart and soul of the middle east. i think many understand that but there is no going _ think many understand that but there is no going around the fact that we must _

it’s on hamas right now? it's interesting, _ on hamas right now?*s interesting, a relatively new development. in my time until 2011, hamas's influence was not that clear. it was egypt, finally, which was. i assume it depends on the problem, the military wing of hamas has created the problem for the political organisation. the political organisation. the political leadership of hamas, which is outside the gaza strip, has to coexist and co—operate with their host country, and the host country could say, listen, what you did is reallyjust darkening our image. you must be more flexible. so a strong political pressure on the military wing. the military wing is on the military pressure itself. we have not seen that before from qatar. . ~ , ., have not seen that before from qatar. ., ~ , ., have not seen that before from qatar. ., ~ i- . have not seen that before from qatar. ., ~ . ., qatar. thank you so much for “oininu qatar. thank you so much for joining us _ qatar. thank you so much for joining us on _ qatar. thank you so much for joining us on bbc— q

hamas. you note the explosions that are taking place along the gaza strip, they come as we are getting some new numbers in from the communities along the border. what we talked about earlier, forces are reaching some of those areas. and we are learning tonight that in one community, called beri, there are a thousand people that live there. over 100 bodies were just recovered. just devastating news. 10% of the population in this town schradered by militants that crossed into israel. some of those neighbors likely taken back alive or dead into the gaza strip. and that was just one area along the border. so, that death toll that now stands at 900 will keep rising as bodies are recovered. we saw today both militants and isreali officers. their bodies being taken by isreali authorities here in this community of sderot. they are trying to ensure the disease is limited and they can recover the dead before this operation ramps up. there is an understanding that as more fire comes from the northern b

>> clearly they underestimate hamas. i think they were so focused on domestic political turmoil, and benjamin netanyahu -- personal coming on tv, talking about how this would impact negatively impact readiness and intelligence. i don't think anyone could have ever imagined to this extent. this is something of hamas was training in plain, site you've been asked is really shifted attention and focus to the west bank, it just remains inexplicable to me that and hack of this magnitude could take place without unintelligent services like israel having even the slightest whiff that any of this was going on >> yes there is one constant sound when you visit gaza, especially late at night, and that is the sound of his early drones overhead amid ongoing realtime information in realtime surveillance to israeli intelligence, which literally as you, say has meant that every square inch of gaza into a -- not-so-have human intelligence saying -- nothing happens -- of what is going on. so it's just a case they got all the information --

, the hamas terrorists. so this is something that will take a long time in some cases, potentially, for them to go through the process of either eliminating the attackers or making sure that they can be captured. so that's going to be job one for them. the next thing that they will end up doing is, you know, like i think was mentioned earlier, shoring up the border area, the idf said they would be doing that, and then we have seen some of this already, but there will be more airstrikes. i think more artillery strikes against gaza and the other thing that they are going to have to do is they are going to have to go after hamas' leadership from a purely military standpoint. that last one could potentially be stopped by diplomatic actions, but that basically how they are going to have to do it. in essence, clean up what is going on in israel on israeli soil and move forward into gaza itself and then, of course, worry about the hostages that the hamas forces have taken with them into gaza. so this is going to be

iran has armed and trained hamas for 30 years. and without iran, that there would be no hamas. lester? >> andrea mitchell, thank you. >>> president biden did not mince his words today as he described the terrorist attacks. peter alexander is at the white house, and peter, this was a strong condemnation. >> lester, this was the most forceful we have seen president biden condemning hamas' attack, comparing their "unadulterated evil," in his words, to isis. the president says that the u.s. is now sending israel more ammunition and interceptors for its iron dome defense system. a team of technical experts experienced in hostage recovery is also on its way tonight, there to advise the israelis, not to rescue americans being held. we are told the president was direct in his call with prime minister netanyahu today, urging him to protect the lives of palestinian civilians, and tonight we have learned the u.s. is discussing safe passage out of gaza, including for palestinian americans through its border with egypt. while all of this was happening while the president was interviewed sun

so hamas has been responsible for those.hey've been using their launch sites in gaza to do this and the israelis are setting up defensive perimeters in the cyber sense to go after the attackers from hamas that are based in gaza, plus others in iran. >> i'm worried if the israelis should be concerned about high offa and some other places. >> absolutely. i think this would be one of the places we could see the possibility of folks from hezbollah coming in and potentially using this area to create diversionary attacks. so between hezbollah, hamas in gaza, the west bank, the palestinian authority there, all of these areas could potentially pose further dangers for the israeli defense forces. >> i know you have some satellite images to share as well. >> absolutely. so these satellite images are actually quite interesting. this line right here, this is the border right here between israel and gaza. and you see, this is the mediterranean sea right here. and you can tell, when you look at each of these satellite images, and you see

hamas released a video of

there were assumptions made by hamas that hamas was quiescent because they were getting aid from qatar, from egypt, that gazans were working inside israel and that hamas wouldn't do anything this big. i think there were these intelligence warnings apparently also from the egyptians, but i think they were sort of ignored because they didn't fit the assumptions policymakers had about what hamas might be capable of. >> u.s. officials, as you know, are still weighing to what are extent iran was involved in the hamas attack against israel. what will it take for the u.s. intelligence community to make a complete determination on this very, very sensitive matter? >> that is a very good question. i imagine that what would be the most useful would be signals intercepts that nsa goes back over periods of the last several weeks and see if there's any kind of signals intercepts that indicate some kinds of heads-up or bank transfers or anything of that nature. so far, despite a week out from this terrible tragedy, we keep sort of hearing the same thing. other than a report in the "wall street journ

it far exceeds hamas. it is not about hamas. it is not about gaza. it is about all of palestine and all of israel and about a future for everybody. >> noura, thank you very much for joining us. we appreciate it. >> thank you for having me. >>> coming up, lester holt just spoke to secretary of state antony blinken during his trip to israel. what he told him, next. what he to hldim, next music ] one aleve works all day so i can keep working my magic. just one aleve. 12 hours of uninterrupted pain relief. aleve. who do you take it for? and for fast topical pain relief, try alevex. my name is marie. i'm 49 years old and i'm a business owner. i own a lemonade and ice cream shop in florida, so i can feel and see that my lines have gotten deeper just from a year out in the sun. i'm still marie and i got botox® cosmetic. i did not want a dramatic change. i wanted something subtle. and i'm really, really happy with the results. it's still me, but with fewer lines. botox® cosmetic is fda approved to temporarily make frown lines, crow's feet, and forehead lines

but hamas is blocking that. >> look, we have a reminder of who hamas is.uses its public as human shields. in fact, i prefer to say what hamas does is it keeps its population hostage. when israel is hitting a camp, a camp i know well. richard engel is right, it's densely populated. i have no doubt hamas has probably put a lot of its command/control structure in the camp trying to use the people there as a shield to prevent the israelis from being able to attack them. the fact that they try to prevent people from going down the main north/south road in gaza, that's to prevent them from going to the south. not letting people go out through rafah. they want to keep people there because they hold them hostage. this is who hamas is. this is who they have always been. you are dealing with basically an adversary who wants to maximize the number of civilian casualties, because they think it creates a better balance of imagery. they think it will put more pressure on israel. they hope to use all the hostages, the ones they are holding and the public, as a deterrent

the stunning deadly hamas raid on israel. cnn's nic robertson arrived in the country just a little while ago and was immediately forced to take cover even as soon as he got off the plane at the international airport. watch this. >> reporter: just got off the plane here at the airport. the sirens have gone off. people are taking cover. we got off the bus, people are taking cover. and you can hear the intercept missiles banging in the air. nothing incoming here, but everyone is taking cover. they've got down. lot of concern about what's going to happen here this night. >> nic robertson is joining us now live from just outside the gaza strip. he's not far from gaza. set the scene for us. what are you seeing on the ground there right now with? >> reporter: yeah, wolf, we've come a little bit south, just outside of a small town called sikhim. about 2.5 miles from the gaza strip. i'm hearing explosions behind me. they sound as if they're coming from the gaza strip. they sound like they're heavy detonations. we've heard fighter jets

hamas military commander mohammad deif announced the start of the operation in a broadcast on hamas mediacalling on palestinians everywhere to fight. israel's military is striking targets in gaza in response. we don't have casualty figures yet from the israeli strikes. let's hear now from simonjones who has an update on the latest. rockets launched from gaza into israel in a surprise attack that started just after dawn. the palestinian militant group hamas claims it launched 5,000 rockets in the space of 20 minutes, some of them long range. militants are said to have entered israeli territory in a number of different locations. gunmen on the loose in one town are reported to have opened fire on civilians. hamas says this is a response to what it describes as israeli violence against palestinians in the west bank. hamas has called on palestinians everywhere to fight. this is the israeli city of ashkelon, north of gaza. firefighters have been tackling flames caused by the strikes. israel's defence forces telling residents around in the gaza strip to stay inside while the people in southern

loved ones taken captive by hamas. this young woman, noa argamani, driven away on a motorbike, her boyfriend right beside her. this woman, pulled by hamas out of the trunk of a jeep. her hands tied behind her, pushed into the back seat by her head. seniors were not spared. yafa adar, an 85-year-old grandmother, wrapped in a pink blanket, driven away on a cart by hamas. the babies, the children. a young mother, shiri bivas, kidnapped, along with her two young children, just 3 and 9 months old. her family says they've heard nothing since. >> that's my cousin, shiri. she's holding her two sons. it's really, really difficult to make people understand the horror. >> david: tonight, for the first time, the white house now says at least 20 americans are among the missing. it's believed many of them could be in the hands of hamas. for two parents from chicago, who moved to jerusalem, there has been no sleep. rachel and jonathan's young son, hersh goldberg polin, who just turned 23, was celebrating his birthday at that music fe

you live in gaza, do you support hamas? i live in the mall i support hamas?mas? i live in the mall and i suoport _ support hamas? i live in the mall and i support the _ support hamas? i live in the mall and i support the light _ support hamas? i live in the mall and i support the light of - support hamas? i live in the mall and i support the light of the - and i support the light of the palestinians to resist occupation. —— | palestinians to resist occupation. —— i live in ramallah. people under occupation have the right to resist in every day. that is applied in ukraine. the question to western governments... inaudible. claiming they are fighting occupation. while they are silent about the israeli occupation for 56 years. this is the main question. yeah, but at least 200 israeli people killed in these attacks. more than 230 people killed in gaza... what do you think hamas, i would really like to know what you think hamas are trying to achieve by launching these attacks? you have explained yourjustification why you think they are doing it, but what they want

she has photos of some of the fence hamas killed -- friends hamas killed. >> this is me.is one of my friend, and he was murdered. i all the time thinking what they did to them, how they suffered. jeremy: with so much loss, all families, she is furious that israel's response is being question. >> this time we realize that after it's us or them. jeremy: if it is us or them, is it ok to ignore international humanitarian law? >> i'm tired of it, of what the law, the international law said. the international law didn't prevent these murders, this brutal murder. where was the world? people was happy about it, people celebrate. jeremy: around the gaza border, civilian volunteers are bringing home comforts to the troops. the soldiers' commanders and it is a waiting game -- commanders say they are ready and it is a war cabinet until they are ordered into gaza the soldiers i spoke to said that the attacks were legal, morally justified, and vital for the scaredy of their families. most of the soldier cashed security of their families. most -- security of their families. most of the

what is hamas? hamas, just like every other arab society, has had a component that is islamist, that is believers in the muslim brotherhood approach to islam. yet traditionally, the islamists in the palestinian arena remain outside the nationalist, the liberation struggle. they were doing religious work, charity, etc. and this changed in 1987. this was the first intifada. the muslim brotherhood in palestine decided they needed to create their own organization that would get involved in this dynamic and hamas was created. hamas is an acronym that stands for the israeli resistance movement. palestine doesn't appear because they see themselves bigger than just palestine. 1980's, hamas was just an irritant, bloody and violent irritant, but not seen as a strategic threat. this changed with the oslo accords. that was the chance for hamas to distinguish itself when the palestinian liberation organization bought into the idea of diplomacy and a two state solution. this was the opportunity for hamas to disti

hamas told them to stay. for those who wants to flee gaza completely, there is no way, israel won't let them in. the other neighbor, egypt, won't accept them. no humanitarian corridor and we know that 2 million live in gaza. about half are children. what happens to them as israel appears ready to launch a ground invasion? >> this is going to be a really terrible mess, i'm afraid, because of those facts that you cited. and the problem that you have is that as you said there is no humanitarian corridor. if there were peace keepers or some kind of u.n. cease fire or something like that. it would be a completely different issue. first of all, it's early in this conflict. and neither side is willing to accept a cease fire at this particular point in time. so the poor civilians are caught in the middle of all of this. were they're going to have to do if they want to avoid what's happening in the north they will have to move to the southern part of gaza near the crossing that goes into egypt. egypt, like you said ha

the gas sector is managed by hamas. what is hamas? it is a palestinian islamist militant group that claims the destruction of israel. many countries, including the united states, britain and also the eu, have recognized hamas or its paramilitary wing as a terrorist group. hamas has support from iran, iran finances it, provides weapons and training, although iran has already declared that it was not involved in this attack by hamas on israel. the united states also says it doesn't see it signs of direct iranian involvement. separately, there is the aggravation on the border between israel and lebanon, and another question is what the lebanese group hezbollah will do, and whether israel will be ready to fight on several fronts if necessary. so the conflict has many dimensions. on the third day after the attack by hamas, the fighting continues, the shelling continues. israel says it has regained control of settlements previously seized by hamas militants, but fighting is still ongoing as palestinian extremists are still in the country, a

hamas.oming two days after they launched a large scale attempt. they do acknowledge israelis are not yet in full control of their territory along the border with a gaza. overnight hamas also claiming to have launched a missile attack on the southern israeli city. the militants say 100 rockets were fired and in response to israeli sanctuary had thenesses. and this all comes as hamas now claims to be holding more than 100 hostages in gaza including five ranking israeli officials. well inside israel, the death toll from hamas' multi-pronged attack has now climbed past 700. at least 260 were killed at the music festival. showing the bodies of some of the victims from that festival near the israel gaza border. that site is one of many targeted i sunt. she joined us live. benjamin netanyahu is warning of a long and difficult war ahead. so what is the latest on the air strikes overnight? and of course the hostage crisis, gripping the country as it comes to terms? >> and the rockets that we have see

from iran and from terrorist movements such as hamas. i do movements such as hamas. movements such as hamas. i do want to ask you, with your expertise, what you envisage us secretary of state antony blinken will be doing tonight? we know he was holding a call with president magruder basque but this is about israel and gaza. how can the united states balance its approach and relations whilst giving its traditional support to israel? i think the message under the diplomatic activity and with the biden and secretary blinker are engaged during the day to day and probably for the next several days is first to register that the united states unequivocally supports israel. the president could not have made that clearer. he was quite blunt. there is no question here of equivalency or balance as those terms are sometimes used. this is support for an ally against a massive calculated terrorist attack against innocent civilians. the other message which they will be passing and working is to try to ensure that all parties with influence in the middle east exercise that influence

hamas has been declared a terrorist organization by the united states. hamas must be destroyed. but in destroying them we must protect the children in gaza. they use them as shields. we want to protect them. so this resolution in overwhelm, bipartisan support on the floor of the house, is so necessary. i urge unanimous vote and thank the chairman and ranking member for their leadership. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. mccaul: i yield one minute to the gentleman from kentucky, mr. barr. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. barr: i rise in support of this resolution affirming israel's right to self-defense against this savnl war perpetrated by hamas an other iranian-backed terrorists. while it was hamas terrorists who invaded peaceful communities across israel, decapitating baby, burning elderly women alive, kidnapping civilians including holocaust survivors, it was iran who was working behind the scenes to support this terror. i support this resolution because it calls out think the m

let him deal with hamas.y eradicate hamas and deal with hezbollah while he's at it. >> i agree. it's what the american military would do. let them at it and figure out when it's needed. >> correct. >> jesse: thank you very much. hamas bragging about taking children hostages. some propaganda videos we've got to warn you about. ♪ hi, i'm michael, i've lost 70 pounds on golo. i spent thousands on other diets that didn't work. on golo, i spent a couple hundred bucks and got back down to my high school weight. you're not gonna believe this thing is possible but it is. 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 your back... is back. or finding psoriasis can't deny the splendor of these thighs. once-daily sotyktu is proven to get more people clearer skin than the leading pill. don't take if you're allergic to

to attack hamas, hamas' infrastructure is - hamas, hamas' infrastructure is embedded in the north, theirans. we target hamas' military machine. you want me to tell panorama there will not be civilian casualties in war, that is irrational. it is impossible. it is irrational. it is impossible. it is very serious. — irrational. it is impossible. it is very serious, it _ irrational. it is impossible. it is very serious, it is _ irrational. it is impossible. it is very serious, it is absolutely serious, _ very serious, it is absolutely serious, the situation in gaza is absolutely— serious, the situation in gaza is absolutely serious. they are striking _ absolutely serious. they are striking back at the civilian population, not at hamas. that is not the _ population, not at hamas. that is not the way— population, not at hamas. that is not the way you do things. not every palestinian _ not the way you do things. not every palestinian in gaza is hamas or supporting hamas. this palestinian in gaza is hamas or supporting hamas.— supporting hamas. this is the hos - ital supporting hamas. this is th

victory for hamas.t is not even worth it because of all of the damage and pain that they will see because of this. joey: we have a lot of questions, a lot of questions get implicated to us, we have a native ally in turkey this is u.s. stay out. we will support our palestinian were untrue brothers. that's a problem. the report from the wall street journal that seems credible that adrienne are the ones that work astray did this. they may be the ones that bring in as below. we don't want to stoke fears here but we want american people to understand that this could be larger than israel and that is a concern. lisa: real quick, speaking of gaza. we know hamas has taken hostages and they told us they put them in tunnels and secure locations. how does that cop became israel's response? joey: going into gaza would be a bloodbath on both sides. urban warfare is the most deadly and gaza's 45 in every way you can think of. coming up, republicans are calling abiding claiming soft on in strategy embolden hamas to at

hamas terrorist, es. first hamas fighters. hamas terrorist, yes- first of _ hamas fighters.ld - hamas fighters. hamas terrorist, yes. first of all, i would say i hamas fighters. hamas terrorist, yes. first of all, i would say we l yes. first of all, i would say we owe the israeli public the security and defence that they deserve and, indeed, there is a huge sense of failure in the system and we will investigate how exactly it happened, where we failed on issues of intelligence, where we failed on the issue of the frontier of the border itself where it did not withhold the terrorists, where we failed on the final line of defence, the soldiers and amount of forces we had and the types of forces we had and that will be an investigation to take place once we have rid the world of this terrorist organisation and the way they govern the gaza strip. moving forward, we're confident that we have a very good grasp of what hamas has. everything we have seen and everything we know that they have done from the forces that came into the south of israel all the way down to the types of mun

his mother was taken hostage by hamas. he wants to ensure that the number one priority is the return of hostages. when it comes to hostages or a ground offensive, what is the number one priority right now? >> the ground offensive is a tool. it's just part of the solution. ground offensive is part of the solution to rid of us hamas. the hostages, as said by our chief of staff and by our prime minister obviously is top priority. indeed, they work in tandem. they work side by side. and they are part of the solution to this crisis. this is not a war we asked for. this is a brutal offense against our sovereign borders. it is an offense against our people. it is an offense against all decent people in the world. and so, and needs to enter with a very clear message that people need to be released, they need to be released. now the international committee of the red cross needs to have access to success this situation and the well-being of the hostages that are being held against their will. the unfathomable crimes that a mosque h

for hamas. if a palestinian dies while israeli is trying to go after hamas terrorists, it is also seen as a victory for hamas. they don't care if their people die. in fact, they said, anybody that tries to make peace with israel will be shot. so the question is, richard, with the united nations warning of a coming humanitarian crisis that many would say is already there, what do the israelis do? what is their best move? they cannot allow gaza to remain run by these terrorists who have run it without an election since 2007. they have to go in, and they have to root out -- i was going to say isis. might as well be isis -- hamas. but how do they do it and avoid a catastrophic humanitarian crisis? >> i'll be controversial here. there is a difference between what israel will do or likely to do and what it should do. what i fear it will do is go in en masse. it'll be extraordinarily costly for israeli armed forces. several will be killed and captured. i think it increases the odds dramatically, if the

has been arming hamas, it- hamas, over 90% of its budget, it has been arming hamas, it has.it has been helping to— has been arming hamas, it has been helping to train — has been arming hamas, it has been helping to train hamas, _ has been arming hamas, it has been helping to train hamas, it— has been arming hamas, it has been helping to train hamas, it has- helping to train hamas, it has been giving _ helping to train hamas, it has been giving hamas— helping to train hamas, it has been giving hamas immense _ helping to train hamas, it has been giving hamas immense logistic- helping to train hamas, it has been giving hamas immense logistic andj giving hamas immense logistic and other— giving hamas immense logistic and other support — giving hamas immense logistic and other support and _ giving hamas immense logistic and other support and that _ giving hamas immense logistic and other support and that has - giving hamas immense logistic and other support and that has made i other support and that has made hamas— other support and that has made hamas of— other support and that