hello, again, everyone. thank you so much for joining me. i'm fredricka whitfield. new today, israel defense forces are now responding, after questions about hamas weapons allegedly found inside gaza's largest hospital. video evidence analyzed by cnn had suggested that the idf may have rearranged weapons found at the al shifa hospital before international news crews visited the scene. the idf says the discrepancy is due to more weapons and assets being discovered throughout the day following a raid earlier this week at the facility, and it comes as israel defense forces are now vowing to advance anywhere hamas is found. there are growing signs that the idf may soon expand its operations into southern gaza. right now, families of hostages are gathered in tel aviv pleading with the israeli government to ensure their loved ones' safe return. that's where we find cnn's jeremy diamond. what are you hearing from people gathered? >> reporter: well, fred, thousands of families of hostages and friends and loved ones are here in tel aviv gathered to try to pressure the israeli government to ensure that they reach a deal to release some of the hostages in gaza in exchange for a multi-day cease-fire. we know there have been reports for days now, weeks even, of a potential deal on the table that is being mediated by the qatari government between israel and hamas. for many of these families, the anxiety of not knowing whether that deal will come through is really unbearable. we spoke with a family with a hostage who is one of the 237 or so estimated hostages held inside gaza. she was kidnapped with her husband and daughter, but ultimately she effectively sacrificed herself as her family made a run for it. her husband and her daughter were able to get away and her husband was here speaking tonight. we speak with her cousin tonight and asked her what her message is to the israeli prime minister. here is your answer. >> our message to them, which we have also, you know, communicated to them directly, is we think there should be a deal now. and we understand there are things we don't know, there are considerations we can't be told about, we believe in you, our daughter believes in us. she always tells us that she knows we're working together, she sees us all working all the time and she knows we're going it to get her back. so kind of in the same way i have to believe they're doing everything to get her back. and our faith, i hope that you can prove our faith was not wrongly given and that you can prove us right and make sure that they start coming back home. because the families need it desperately. >> reporter: while it's unclear whether the israeli government to going to reach a deal to free some of the hostages from gaza, what is clear is there were two marches today, thousands of people in tel aviv, and also tens of thousands of people in front of the prime minister's office. at least for now, the israeli prime minister has now agreed to meet with the families of these hostages in addition to the full war cabinet. so at least, if there was anything drawn from today, it appears to have at least pressured the israeli prime minister to meet with these families once again and move forward in hopes of reaching some kind of a deal for the release of some of these hostages. >> jeremy, what is the idf saying about the operation in gaza today, if anything? >> reporter: they say they're continuing to expand their ground operation inside the gaza strip. they say they operated the last 24 hours inside the refugee camp and effectively what they are doing is conducting clearing operations. we hear the israeli defense minister a few days ago say the israeli military has control of the northern part of the gaza strip. while they may have control in some areas, clearly these operations indicate that they are clearing out areas of hamas militants and those tunnels, dozens of miles of tunnels underneath the gaza strip that present an enormous challenges to forces operating there. >> thank you so much. let's talk more about the latest developments with cnn military analyst and retired colonel cedric leighton. is it your view that at this point israel, should it be bringing in a third party, third-party observers to verify some of the claims being made at gaza and at the hospital in particular? >> yeah, fredricka, good to be with you. i think the answer is yes in this particular case, because everything the israelis have said when it comes to all of the claims they've made, there's a lot of intelligence to back up what their claims are. however, once the proof comes out, they have difficulty convincing people on the outside, whether it's people of the arab world, people here in the united states, it becomes essential for them to have a third party to verify the claims, and if they are true, so much the better for the squall h israelis. if they are not true, it indicates there's a moment where they have to reassess their intelligence that they have on hamas and then go from there. but it would definitely be in their interest to have a third party look at this. >> and credibility is also at stake, particularly for israel, when we're seeing reports now, we're seeing videotape documenting that civilians at the encouragement of a humanitarian pause are being told they may have 30 minutes in which to evacuate, only to now see on videotape people injured and killed. how is this setting back the israeli strategy of going after hamas, and at the same time claiming to have these humanitarian pauses to try to reduce the civilian casualty count, only for civilians to be killed during these humanitarian pauses? >> yeah, it's absolutely unacceptable to have civilians killed during what are supposed to be humanitarian pauses. the civilians need to be -- the rules of war are pretty explicit in that regard, and it's also clear that hamas has violated a lot of the rules of war as well. but the key thing for the israelis is that they have to behave in a way that is far more considerate, far more in concert with the rules of war. and that is something where, when it comes to things like humanitarian pauses, they need to be held and they also need to give the civilian population there safe areas in which they can go. the israeli effort that has been announced over the last 24 hours to attack other areas of gaza is going to be a problem if the israelis go into areas where refugees are. and that's going to not only look bad, but it really puts a lot of people at risk. and that's something that the israelis need to avoid at this point. >> doesn't that seem inevitable at this point as the idf is saying it's moving south, and that is the area where they had asked people in the northern gaza to evacuate to? so how does israel go after its mission, defeat hamas, and not take out more civilians? >> yeah, it's a real problem for them, because those two goals, the military objective that the israelis have of, in essence, destroying hamas' military capability along with its political capability, that does conflict, especially if the tactical and other movements are in other parts of the territory, such as the southern part. and that does conflict with the goal of protecting civilians, and it does also indicate that the israelis have a very limited area in which they can operate, but of course the civilians in gaza have no place to go, and without the safety valve of being allowed to, let's say, move into egypt, the egyptians are not allowing that. if they don't have that, then there is truly no place for the civilian population to go, and the israelis have to modify their operations to reflect that. the key thing is this should not be a full-blown military force on force invasion, but a counterinsurgency operation, and that is something that the israelis really need to, in essence, change their tactics and move in that direction in order to safeguard as many people as they possibly can. >> colonel cedric leighton, thank you so much. have a great holiday week. the idf says there are currently 237 hostages held by hamas in gaza. today thousands more called on their government more to bring them home. it has been six agonizing weeks of not knowing where their loved ones are or how they're doing. cnn's nic robertson met with families of some of the hostages and has more on the efforts to bring them home. >> reporter: these are the moments, october 7th, where this kibbutz began its nightmare. by the time the idf arrived that afternoon, nearly one-fifth of the residents would be kidnapped. one of the more than 70 taken, he was here at his workshop renovating buses when hamas attacked at 6:30 in the morning. eventually he was able to make it back to his house, barricade his wife and children into the bomb shelter. that was the last they saw of him. >> he made his wife swear that she wouldn't open the door for anyone. >> his father is caring for his son's family, campaigning for his release. >> he's the kind of son who can complete thoughts for me. a big part of me is absent right now because of siggy, and obviously because of the other losses on the kibbutz. >> some of them entire families that were murdered. their lives much intertwined with my family's life for the last 40 years. >> what's left of the kibbutz community is still intertwined. most everyone together, hundreds of miles away, they have each other, but their nightmare continues. >> how do you think the community the coping? you're kind of altogether. does that help? >> yes and no. because not always lifting you. sometimes it's dragging you down. >> really? >> yeah. because people are traumatized and hurt. >> he is hurting. his brother is another one of the hostages taken october 7th. >> i have some days i feel great and i feel strong and an optimist. and i have some days i feel the complete opposite. >> nia survived the attack hiding in here, in his bomb shelter, with his two young daughters. he whispered fairy stories as the hours-long battle raged around them. >> so much shooting, not only from guns, but rpgs and grenades. i heard them break in my house and i told my girls that a tree fell down on the house. >> reporter: it wasn't until he came out of his house that he became to realize his brother may not have been as lucky as him. just a few meters away, his brother's house was on fire. his brother's house was gutted. no proof of life from hamas for him or jonathan's son. >> it's excruciating. he is the father of two little girls, married to his wife, now eight months pregnant. so it is a nightmarish situation. we don't know if he's healthy or wounded. it's a fate shared by, as i said, almost all of the hostages still being held. >> already feeling left down by the idf's slow response october 7th, concerns in the community are growing. the government may let them down again. >> they talk about to make a deal with the kidnapped people to bring back the babies and the women, and then i'm afraid that the men will be left behind. >> why? >> because i think since that day, we can't really trust the government. >> reporter: the lack of trust in the government is also adding to their nightmare. even if they do get their loved ones back, could they ever return? >> we don't know if we'll ever be able to move back to the kibbutz. >> are people ready for that? >> in order to go back, certainly for our younger families, my children and grandchildren would have to have a guarantee from our army, from our government, that this could never happen again. >> would you go back? >> it's very hard to answer. if the situation is same as now, never, no chance. >> reporter: the community is working on other locations that will help them stay together. their dream life not a distant memory. but, still, a living nightmare. nic robertson, cnn. still ahead, a colorado judge rules donald trump can be on the state's ballot, but also says he engaged in the january 6th insurrection. we'll talk about what that means next. plus, a new poll shows that while trump maintains a significant lead among likely gop voters in new hampshire, former south carolina governor nikki haley has moved into second place. we'll talk about what that means for the republican presidential field. a colorado judge has ruled former president donald trump can remain on the state's 2024 presidential primary ballot. the district judge says trump engaged in an insurrection on january 6th, but ruled the 14th amendment insurrectionist ban does not apply to u.s. presidents. joining me is cnn reporter marshal cohen. break down this ruling for us. >> a huge ruling in a closely watched case in colorado. the judge reaching the remarkable conclusion that donald trump engaged in an insurrection against the united states constitution for his actions after the 2020 election, and for inciting the riot at the u.s. capitol on january 6th. however, the constitution's ban on insurrectionists from holding office does not apply to presidents, and therefore, he will remain on the ballot in colorado. that was the big question in this case, does he have to be taken off the ballot or can he stay. now, the judge in denver concluded that the text of the constitution, the text of this amendment, 14th amendment, says very clearly that you can't be a senator, you can't be a representative, you can't hold other offices if you engage in insurrection. but it doesn't say anything about the presidency, and she wanted to stick to the text of the constitution. that was her ruling. trump stays on the ballot. it's a win for him. this is going to be appealed. this is probably not the final word in this case. a lot of people are expecting these questions to go all the way to the supreme court. but it's another win for trump after wins in a few other states, too. >> and even though trump will stay on the ballot there in colorado, there were some really damning findings in here. what did the judge say about his actions on january 6th, besides the fact that she did declare that he's guilty of being an insurrectionist? >> right. so there were a lot of things that she had to look at. she presided over a week-long trial with testimony from witnesses, from a man part of the mob, a trump supporter, from police officers who were victims of the fight. so this is the biggest fact-finding operation by a judge to date looking at donald trump's conduct. and one of her big conclusions was that he acted with a specific intent to in cite political violence that day. that was the basis of her conclusion that he engaged in insurrection, that she was -- that he directed it at the capitol with the purpose of disrupting the electoral certification on january 6th. however, as you said, fred, it did not rise to the level of disqualification from office. >> marshal cohen, good to see you. thank you so much. still to come, donald trump returns to iowa today, with the gop caucuses in that key state just eight weeks away. we're live in iowa right after this. former president trump is in iowa today, his visit to the hawkeye state comes just eight weeks before the caucuses are held. trump and several other presidential candidates are litting the state hard to court voters. we're joined from ft. dodge, iowa. where does this race stand in this state? what's happening there today, in fact? >> reporter: yeah, well, fred, donald trump is by and far still commanding the polls here in iowa. he is leading. his challenger is at 43%, a recent poll showed 43% of likely republican caucus goers support donald trump, and the closest rival was ron desantis and nikki haley with 16%. his team is feeling very good heading into this final stretch before the january 15 caucus. he is still aggressively campaigning in this state to try and quash any sort of last-minute challenge that the other candidates are trying to mount against him, and in the hopes to try and undermine his ca candidacy. i will say he wasn't the only one in iowa. the other top republican contenders converged on the state and many of them, ron desantis, nikki haley, vivek ramaswamy, went to an event last night hosted by an evangelical group, a thanksgiving forum. they talked a lot about their faith and how their religion impacts them personally. one of the most prominent topics was about abortion, and that was salient give continue christian audience in the room. and nikki haley, unlike her republican challengers, has not backed a national abortion ban, said that she would sign, if she were still south carolina governor an abortion ban -- excuse me, a bill banning most abortions after six weeks. another big moment in the night was when ron desantis and vivek ramaswamy shared some really deeply personal stories. they both opened up for the first time about how their wives had previously had miscarriages. it was a really cozy event, and they opened up and got very personal. and really the only other thing i want to tell you is that the big elephant in the room was that donald trump was not there. he was invited to that thanksgiving forum but chose not to attend. instead, skipping the event to hold his own rally in ft. dodge today. and that's in keeping with his fast snubs of the primary process as well as his challengers. >> i was going to say, that's been the pattern. while he may have been the elephant in the room, i guess they're getting used to it because he doesn't often show up when everybody else is there. thank you so much. with me now to talk more about the gop race overall, charlie dent is with us, a former republican congressman from pennsylvania, and scott jennings, a cnn political commentator and former special assistant to president george w. bush. good to see you both, gentlemen. charlie, let me begin with you. trump remains the clear front-runner in iowa and all the other states, but nikki haley is surging. she's tied for second in that nbc iowa poll, and a recent new hampshire poll shows her also jumping in second place in that state. so following commanding appearances, perhaps, televised debates, is that what might contribute to her rise in the polls? >> yeah, nikki haley has grown as a candidate. i think she was underestimated by a lot of folks early on, and she might have been a little too careful early on. but her debate performances have been strong, and he's one of the only candidates, along with chris christie, who have really kept an eye on the general electorate. in other words, they're not just simply playing for the hardest elements of the base, engaging the culture warfare. that's not what she seems to be about. i think she's run a pretty smart, measured campaign. that said, donald trump is in a commanding lead and right now second place doesn't do it. ron desantis is clearly, his candidacy has been diminishing for some time. he's hoping for a miracle in iowa. right now it looks like nikki haley is emerging as the consensus alternative to donald trump. the question is, can she break through in the end? >> do you feel that while nikki haley is on the way up, ron desantis could be in trouble, especially when it comes to donors? >> sure, haley looks like she's attracting some of the bigger donors right now. you can see them in the press talking about how they want to gravitate toward her. desantis has plenty of money to prosecute the kind of campaign he's trying to run. iowa is a big deal. if he can get close to trump in iowa, maybe overtake trump in iowa, which is no sure thing, they're all very far back from donald trump, that gives you a springboard. for haley, her campaign has really been rising in new hampshire and seems to be built more for new hampshire right now. trump is ahead in both states. he's ahead nationally. he's not descending into the campaign sort of stuff that everybody else seems to have to do right now, because he doesn't want to look like he's fighting these people. he wants to look like he's already got it locked up and there's not that much time left, to be honest. so i think desantis still has a fighting chance, frankly, in iowa. he's got a big organization there, and haley is trying to get rid of the other anti-trump candidates so she can continue to rise in new hampshire. still a long shot. >> charlie, let's zero in on haley, because recent polls, while they show trump narrowly leading in a handful of battleground states, a recent national survey showed haley leading biden in a hypothetical national matchup by ten points. so, charlie, does this help haley make the argument that she has a better chance of beating biden than trump? >> of course. close to two-thirds of american voters want someone other than donald trump or joe biden. they think one of these candidates is too old, the other too crazy, donald trump. and nikki haley represents the next generation of leadership. she is a very strong, smart, attractive candidate with an eye toward the general election. team biden is very worried about her. that's why they're attacking her, as they should, because they know she's very formidable. if nikki haley were the nominee, and that's a long shot because right now she's fighting for second place. and second place might as well be last place. but she's going to have to start tearing the bark off of donald trump, all of them are, if they hope to face joe biden and get into that matchup, which would be favorable or nikki haley and republicans more broadly. >> scott, to borrow that phrase tear the bark off, how does haley and desantis do that, since trump is so far out ahead? >> well, the reality is you don't. everybody has tried, ads don't work. rhetoric doesn't work. what you're going to have to hope if you're either of them is that there's enough republicans, half or more of the republican party, that says ultimately we love you, but it's time for you to move on, donald trump. that does not appear to be the case right now. the other thing for haley is she came before trump. desantis is largely a creature of the post-trump era. haley came before trump, and one question about the republican party is, in terms of alignment, doesn't want to go back to politicians from the pre-trump era, people like haley who would appeal to a larger coalition of voters who speak the language the republican party used to speak before donald trump came along and re-wrote the alphabet. i don't know if there are. if there is to be somebody, she is the most polished politician from that era still left out there making the case. more hawkish, more internationalist, more into free trade, the traditional conservative issues. she certainly knows how to speak that language. the question is, does the party still want you to speak that, or are they looking for something else? she's certainly hoping to be a throwback in a way that mike pence and tim scott and others could not do. >> charlie, trump has been steering clear of the gop debates. so far it doesn't seem to be hurting him. if haley continues to surge, at some point, at what point do you see that he will be willing to jump into the debates? >> well, right now it seems that donald trump's strategy of avoiding debates is working just fine. i suspect he will continue down that path, unless there's so much pressure that he needs to get in or he starts losing support because of it. but so far it doesn't appear that way. something scott said, i think is true. the republican party really does need to make a choice. if trump is gone, do we want trumpism and that type of orientation, isolationist, anti-trade, or do we want to go back to a politician like nikki haley? that's an issue for the republican party to sort out. i don't think we're there. i would prefer to have somebody a lot more traditional than what we have right now. and so right now, though, nikki haley's job is to try to break through this thing, do as well as she can in iowa and new hampshire, and hope that republican voters recognize that there's too great a risk with indictments, 91 counts. it's a bridge too far. and hopefully we're all hoping that republican voters will come to that realization, too great a risk. >> charlie dent, scott jennings, we'll leave it there. thank you so much. you gentlemen have a great holiday week. >> thanks, fred. coming up, more than 100 days after the devastating maui wildfire, a former nasa engineer, a father, author, and a mother are still unaccounted for. the latest on new searches for the missing after a quick break. more than 100 days have passed since the wildfire that destroyed lahaina on maui and four are still missing, months after the devastating fire. and now local law enforcement has launched new searches within lahaina's burn zone to help find out what happened to them. cnn's mike valerio joins me with more. what can you tell us about these four who remain missing? >> reporter: fredricka, based on what we've been able to uncover, we know the four people who still to this day are classified as technically missing, one of them as you mentioned before the break, is a former engineer for nasa, another one is a published author who also doubles as an artist, another is a father of two, and a fourth is a beloved mother who has lost an astounding eight members of her extended family. the officers are going to meet and they said they are not finished searching for them. more than 100 days later, it is still nearly incomprehensible, taking in all that is lost. >> you're there sobbing, and you see the trauma. >> reporter: these maui police officers are two of the heroes whose task force has investigated every single missing persons case from the fire. >> we're working toward the goal of making sure anybody with a lost loved one, we're able to find them or give them closure. >> reporter: but that has been elusive for the families of four people not seen since the fire. among those who are still missing is robert owens. >> we learned that he worked as nasa as an engineer. paul kasprzycki is a woodworker, author and father of two. elmer lee stevens is a father of two and does find solace in the quiet pleasures of life. >> also missing is lydia caluma. >> she is a mother, life, well respected community member. >> an astounding eight of her family members lost their lives in the lahaina fire. >> we still are getting family reference samples coming in. >> tony earls leads the csi team and says as of now, there's one set of human remains that hasn't been identified yet. >> we have ideas of who we think it is. >> reporter: but he adds when it comes to putting a name to the remains -- >> i can guarantee it will be days, if not weeks, or maybe even months. >> reporter: this week the officers are planning new burn zone searches. >> steve and i are still going out into the rubble, the burn zone, and we'll find new information out. we want to get the rest of those people. >> reporter: officer taylor told us he knew some of the victims. >> one of the unfortunate ways i found out was we would get the dna confirmation sheets, and i was reading through it so i could find out who it was. i read the name and it was from a former coworker. she used to work at the police department. when i started my career, i worked closely with her. >> reporter: the officer was already changed, deeply affected by devastating wildfires. >> my hometown is paradise, california, so they went through this. so i made it an effort to get into this position so that i could be beneficial for the department and be there for the families and friends, because i have families and friends in paradise that lost their homes and everything. >> reporter: for now, it's been 100 days of work. both officers remain hopeful there will be answers, and eventual solace for the families of the four who are still missing. >> when i set out, it was no stone unturned, no one left behind. i am committed and dedicated to make sure i reach that goal. >> reporter: fred, the natural, and certainly very delicate question coming out of the story, is whether we can consider the four people who are listed as technically missing likely lost in the fire. and the answer is no, we can't make that a sssumption as of ye. this is why. we're going to bring you to the last weekend of october, when there were five people on the missing list. we at cnn were the first to confirm maui police found one person that was on the missing list alive and healthy, bringing the missing total to four just before halloween. so there is a mix of emotions, whether it be realistic expectations that the worst could unfold for those four. but there is also hope, fred, as maui moves forward. >> got to keep that hope. mike valerio, thank you so much. we'll be right back. now to the rise of hate speech in the u.s., particularly in the wake of the hamas terror attacks on israel. cnn's donie o'sullivan looked at how hate groups are actively trying to stoke anti-semitism. we should warn you that some of the images you're about to see are offensive. >> reporter: these are not typical pro-palestinian supporters protesting outside the white house. >> it's a bunch of lies just like your [ bleep ] holocaust. >> reporter: here part of an anti-semitic group founded by white supremacists. some of the same people who are behind the 2017 unite the right rally in charlottesville, virginia. they're just one of multiple hate groups in the united states using the israel/hamas conflict to push an agenda of anti-semitism. but extremists are not just showing up at pro-palestinian protests. they're dumping anti-semitic flyers in neighborhoods across the country. it's happened in 35 states so far this year. >> i just can't believe the hate that still exists. and toward the jewish people. so i totally despise this. >> reporter: some of the flyers are the work of a network of anti-semitic extremists also linked to disruptions at city council meetings across the count. they call in to sfu hate. a few weeks ago, a new tactic using artificial intelligence. >> i'm the ceo of the antidefamation lead. >> reporter: that may sound like the head of the adl, an organization that come bats hate. but it hasn't time. it was a fake voice created using ai. the defense league celebrated the stunt, which made it sound like the adl was endorsing the hate group's anti-semitic flyers. >> we simply cannot debunk them. they are true. >> this is just an attempt by individuals to disrupt and demean and shock people and get a response that affects others. >> reporter: the head of the group is currently serving a 30-day jail sentence in florida for littering charges related to the flyers. >> communities, unfortunately, are sharing active footage from hamas celebrating the deaths of jewish people. >> reporter: ben decker leads a threat analysis company that tracks online hate. he says there's been a massive spike in support for hamas by america extremists. much of it on a notorious hate-filled site, and the extremists are taking it a step further, using ai not only to imitate, but also to actually create anti-semitic and hateful images. >> there's a weird fusion that began to occur in which actual hamas propaganda started to aesthetically blend with anti-semitic tropes and memes that have been on 4chan for years. >> they're serious and drawing the attention of law enforcement. homeland security warns that hate groups are celebrating attacks on the jewish community and could use the hamas attacks as an inspiration to fight. [ crowd chanting ] >> pro-palestinian protesters made it clear to us they don't want anything to do with these hate groups. >> neo-nazi hate groups showing up to demonstrations like this, how does that make you feel? >> i think it's horrible. i think it derails the entire movement. >> white supremacist opportunist using the palestinian cause as a vehicle for their prejudice are not welcome. the freedom movement stands against all forms of hatred, against anti-jewish hatred. >> reporter: and this really highlights how artificial intelligence technology, whether it's the creation of deep fake video, fake audio or fake images there, as you saw in that report, can really be used to super charge misinformation, disinformation, and it really is something we have to be on the lookout for, and social media platforms and political parties will have to be very wary of as we go into 2024, with critical elections here in the united states, in india and elsewhere around the world. back to you. >> thanks so much, donny o'susullivan. we'll be r right back.k. we all have heroes in our lives. and for a kid like me, who's had 13 operations. and can now walk. you might think, that i'd say my hero is my doctor or nurse. or even my physical therapist, and they are. but there's someone else, who's a hero to me and 1.5 million other kids and counting. you may be surprised, but my hero is you. is people just like you, who give every month. to shriners hospitals for children. and because of heroes like you. i can do things now that were impossible before. and i can walk. all of this is made possible because of heroes like you. who go online to loveshriners.org right now. when you do, we'll send you this adorable love to the rescue blanket as a thank you. and a reminder of all the kids whose hero you are. each and every month. please call or go to loveshriners.org right away. hello, again, everyone. thank you for joining me this saturday. i'm fredricka whitfield. we begin in israel where families are desperate for the return of hostages who have been held by hamas for more than six weeks. right now families are gathered in tel aviv and they're calling on israel's government to do everything they can to bring them home safely. it com