Transcripts For CNNW The Situation Room 20140714

Coming into israel. Plus, extreme weather danger. Youre looking at a live picture of washington as nearly onethird of the country faces severe thunderstorms, flooding and dramatic drops in temperature. So what is the weather phenomenon thats causing it all . We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. Im wolf blitzer in jerusalem. Youre in the situation room. Were following the breaking news, and it is significant. Egypt is now calling for a halt to the fighting starting tomorrow morning offering to broker help maintain a ceasefire just as it did during the last Armed Conflict between israel and hamas some two years ago. Weve just learned the Prime Minister of israel Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Israeli Security cabinet to meet first thing Tuesday Morning and review the egyptian proposal which senior israeli Officials Say they are taking very, very seriously. The two sides are one week into this latest deadly air war where hamas tiring haphazard rockets into israel. Israel responding with Precision Air strikes that have also killed at light of 185 people in gaza topping the number in the last war according to israeli officials. Were covering all angles of this significant story this hour. Our correspondents are standing by across the region. Our guests include the United States ambassador to israel. First, the latest on the fighting. Tonight, a steady pounding on both sides of the border. I was waiting in a sealed border checkpoint with our crew when we had to duck for cover. Just heard shots. Were not exactly sure whats going on. You can see one israeli soldier over there collapsed. Did we get the all clear . A young israeli woman soldier clearly was traumatized. She fell to the ground and started to cry. You dont often see that. Later she told me its been really, really hard especially on these young 18, 19yearold soldier whos come on the border and hear rockets going off. Israel says about 1,000 rockets have been fired from gaza some of them intercepted by the dome Defense System while we were in the border city. Another rocket made it through, damaging cars and this mans neighborhood. I heard very strong boom around here. Everything shook. Things fell. I peeked from the door and saw the dust going this way. I understood it was very, very close by. Reporter hamas is showing off another weapon in its arsenal claiming this video is of drones built by its military wing. Israel says it shot down a drone spotted along its coastline. Israeli forces massed at the gaza border and striking from the air. Hammering what israel calls terror targets about 1500 strikes so far. The Palestinian Death toll is rising. Their funeral for a father and son. U. N. Officials say 70 of the dead in gaza are civilians including more than 30 children and two women were killed when an israeli air strike hit a center for the disabled. A u. N. Agency says 17,000 refugees now are taking shelter in 20 schools in gaza. Cnn diana magnay is in a kibbutz near the border. Ben wedeman is joining us from gaza city. Ben, have you gotten any reaction from hamas to this proposal for a ceasefire which the Egyptian Foreign Ministry formally put out as ireported earlier . A senior official says the israelis are taking it very seriously and will have a special meeting of their security cabinet, that the Prime Minister is convening first thing Tuesday Morning. Any reaction at all from hamas in gaza where you are . Reporter weve heard, wolf from fauscy bar human, a spokesman for the movement who says there will be no cease fire as far as hamas and the other groups and organizations here in gaza are concerned unless their conditions are met. Their conditions are an end to the Israeli Offensive and operations in the west bank, release of all those who had who have been rounded up in that israeli operation in the west bank who were part of the gi lad deal from 2011. So until those conditions are met, hamas says there will be no cease fire. However, there is a lot of pressure from ordinary people here in gaza foreign. As you mentioned the death toll is now almost 190. Life has been completely disrupted. More than 1,300 people wounded. Here in gaza, theyre ready for a ceasefire, but maybe hamas isnt. Wolf . Because if you read carefully as i have and im sure you have, as well, ben, the egyptian cease fire proposal which the Foreign Ministry in cairo made public, they say all of these issues could be discussed down the road but the immediate need is to stop the israeli air strikes and stop the hamas rocket attacks on israel. Stop that and then discuss some of this other stuff. What youre hearing from a hamas person in gaza is theyre not going to accept an immediate cease fire in place and discuss other issues down the road. They want israel, for example to, release the palestinian prisoners and other demands they put forward before they accept any ceasefire. Is that right . Yeah, thats correct. But that may not be the final word. That may have been his initial reaction to the news. But we do know that despite the chilled relations between cairo and hamas within the last year since the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi, assisi the president was the head of military intelligence before he came to power. Hes a man with a lot of connections and he could easily twist some arms here in gaza to make this thing work. I dont think the egyptians would have put it out on the table so publicly unless they thought it had a very good chance of working. Wolf . Im going to be speaking later this hour where osama hamdan, one of the chief speaks mans of hamas. Well get his reaction to the cease fire proposal. Ben, stand by for a moment. Diana magnay is in escalon not far from the gaza border. Its come under rocket attacking from hamas. What are you hearing over there, diana . I know the israelis are taking this egyptian cease fire proposal very seriously because a senior israeli official told me so. Yes, well, i think the most important thing to tell you, wolf, is that even before we heard about this proposal, i was remarking with my team how quiet it was compared to the last few nights or in fact the last week of this campaign when every evening weve had volleys of rockets going overhead. Today as dusk fell, we were overlooking the border awaiting the same thing, there was nothing. There has been no rockets coming this way. We will thought has some sort of consensus been reached between parties within gaza . Now we have this proposal for a ceasefire. Its difficult to gauge really how israelis will react. If there is the possibility that egypt can be broker a deal between both sides and both sides do decide to stop firing at each other. I would imagine that a lot of people in israel will go, what does that achieve . We did exactly what we did this time two years ago. There was a ceasefire, then hamas built up its rockets and the same thing happened. And certainly the sentiment from people here in the south, wolf, and im sure youve spoken to them too is they want to see the Israeli Government be very hard on hamas because they experience these rocket attacks not just during an operation like this but pretty much consistently. Its a fact of daily life. I would imagine for the people in tel aviv in jerusalem, they just want normal life to continue. I think youll get a very mixed reaction. All of that is what will Benjamin Netanyahu will be having to take into account as he looks very carefully at this whole, wolf. Together with his security cabinet. I was with you earlier today along the border with gaza. I can confirm everything youre saying. Stand by. Well get back to you in a few moments, as well. Lets get israeli reaction to the breaking news were following. Michael lorn is the form ser israeli ambassador to the United States and is joining us now from tel aviv. It looks like the Israeli Cabinet will meet tomorrow, taking this egyptian proposal seriously. Is this the break through a lot of folks, israelis and palestinians, ambassador, have been looking for . Well, its an Unusual Development insofar as in previous rounds of fighting between israel and hamas, usually a mediator, egyptians in 2012, it was secretary of state clinton, had to shuttle back and forth for hours hammering out the details of an agreement in order to get the ceasefire. Now the egyptians are saying theres going to be a ceasefire and then theyll sit down and hammer out the details of an agreement. Hamas as you heard earlier is saying it wants these prisoners released. It wants israel to lift its maritime blockade of the gaza strip and wants the border crossings open to egypt with theyre closed right now. Israel has demands. It wants hamas to be effectively demilitarized of its missile arsenal. It wants no return to the status quo that existed before where there was a ceasefire that enabled hamas to build up its missile arsenal with even bigger missiles and longer range missiles. I cant seek for the entire israeli public but i think the average in the street is going to object to any ceasefire that really just brings israel back to what existed in the last year and a half. Which leads me to think that there may be more to this cease fire than just a pure cease fire, that theres been some indicationing that hamas will be relieve of its missile arsenal perhaps by egyptian or even palestinian inspectors from the west bank. Egypt certainly has a role, has an interest in increasing the influence and the prestige of Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority in the west bank and getting Mahmoud Abbas involved in controlling the situation in gazaings. Well, we know that the new egyptian president alcee see is someone very different than the man he replaced Mohamed Morsi who brokered the last cease fire. Israel has a pretty Good Relationship with this new egyptian president. I suspect that is in part with Benjamin Netanyahu is now taking the ceasefire proposal very seriously, convening a special meeting of the Israeli Security cabinet first thing Tuesday Morning. You know netanyahu, the Prime Minister of israel, well. Walk us through what his thinking is but do it relatively briefly. Its just very simple. Its not going back to the status quo that existed between november of 2012, that is the last cease fire and last week. And when that cease fire broke down. And that a ceasefire enabled hamas to build up its rocket arsenal. Prime minister netanyahu will present to his cabinet a ceasefire which he will say to them is going to result in a defacto demillerrization of gaza similar to the way the chemical weapons were removed from Bashar Assads regime in syria. Do you think thats something hamas would be realistically inclined to accept . Well, i listened to the speech of the leader of hamas tonight, and it was anything but a victory speech. Usually hamas declares some great victory over the enemy. Tonight he virtually apologized through his people. He didnt want this war. Sorry for putting you through so much suffer. Hamas is isolated in the region and it has presided over a ruinous economy. Hamas could the alsoen incentivized here i believe with the possibility of easing the israeli blockade of opening border crossings between israel and gaza and between egypt and be gaza and maybe some Nice International aid package for the people of gaza not only to rebuild from their war damage but to resuscitate the gazan economy which has been so morbid over the past few years. Perhaps the qataris will play a role in providing funds. Theyve got the monies. Theyve been involved behind the scenes, as well. Michael, stand by. Well get back to you, as well. Coming up, were live here in jerusalem following the breaking news. A ceasefire proposal put forward by the egyptians, the israelis welcoming it. And in effect, taking it very, very seriously. The leadership of hamas. Were still waiting for a formal reaction. Who are the men calling the shots in the air war against israel . Would they it be open to a ceasefire. Reporter what does hamas make of egypts new cease fire proposal . How seriously is hamas taking this plan . Ill speak with a top hamas spokesman standing by live. Stay with us. Were continuing our breaking news on our special report live from jerusalem. vo friday night has always been all fun and games, here at the harrison household. But one dark, stormy evening. She needed a good meal and a good family. So we gave her purina cat chow complete. Its great because it has the four cornerstones of nutrition. Everything a cat needs for the first step to a healthy, happy life. Purina cat chow complete. Share your rescue story and join us in building better lives. One rescue at a time. Hi, Credit Report site andour i have a problem. I need to speak with your fraud resolution department. Ugh, we dont have that. What should i tell him . Just make that super annoying modem noise. shuuuuuuuh. Zzzzzzzz. De ee. Dong. Shuuuhh. hello . Not all Credit Report sites are equal. Classic. Experian. Com members get personalized help plus fraud resolution support. 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Weve just learned that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered his Israeli Security cabinet to meet Tuesday Morning to review the egyptian proposal wila senior israeli official has told me, the Israeli Government is taking very seriously. Lets get the reaction from hamas, the hamas spokesman osama hamdan is joining us once again from hey route. Are you taking the egyptian cease fire proposal very seriously . Well, i have to say clearly, its not a real proposal. Some ideas. There is ideas which was introduced by the egyptians for the israeli side because everyone knows that egyptian has hosted the negotiations 2012 and there was a ceasefire. Israel violated first. Now we are still talking about the violation and what may happen. We believe that the ideas are still ideas unless the israelis show a clear position towards those ideas and unless as the israelis say they are ready to deal with them in a serious way. We dont have till now any information about the israeli position or any reaction from the israeli side except what netanyahu have done. He called for a meeting for the security cabinet to discuss the issue. Well, let me go through the egyptian proposal because as you know, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry publicly released the document they put forward to hamas to your leadership in gaza as well as to the israelis. And its beak a fourpoint proposal. Very simple. Point number one which you will accept is that israel shall cease all hostilities against the gaza strip by land sea and air refrain from conducting ground incursions against gaza or targeting civilians. Thats something you definitely want israel to stop launching air strikes into gaza. Heres what they want from you, this is the egyptian proposal. I want your specific reaction. All palestinian factions in gaza considerable cease all hostilities im reading this for our viewers so they know what the egyptian proposal wants hamas to do. All palestinian factions in gaza shall cease all hostilities from the gaza strip against israel via land, sea and underground and commit to refrain from firing all types of rockets and from attacks on the borders or targeting civilians. If israel stops firing it on hamas and the Palestinian People in gaza, will you stop launching rockets against israel . Well, i have to answer in two points, if you dont mind. First, the egyptians did not send that initiative to us. It was not sent to the palestinian side, nothing, not the palestinian organizations, not hamas. So it was released in the media and we dont talk about such issues in the media. This is the first point. So the till now we consider that there is no official egyptian initiative. There is official done by the United States and the mediators, the turks and the qataris. Second point, what we have said from the first day is we did not start the attack. The israelis violated the ceasefire. They started attacking the palestinians. So the Resistance Movement reacted against that. We will did the reaction. So what we were asking for in the last eight, nine days that the israelis must stop their attack and must stop their attack against west bank which is not clear in the egyptian declared paper. I insist we did not receive that officially yet. They did mention the fact which was under huge collective punishments from four weeks to now. They have to mention now. The egyptians have to answer a big question. The Prisoners Exchange agreement was violated also by the israelis and 60 were rearrested by the israelis. We were talking about rearresting this em also. The Palestinian Legislative Council were arrested just for effect story created by netanya netanyahu. We want answers. I want to say clearly, we ask from the first day that israel must stop attacking the palestinians, stop the violation of the palestinian or the ceasefire agreement and also stop the collective punishments against west bank. Those ideas are not in the egyptian paper. I was going to im sorry for interrupting, mr. Hamdan. They say if the israelis stop firing on gaza and hamas and the other palestinian factions Islamic Jihad stop fire ong israel, then the egyptian proposal goes on to say border crossings for gaza which the people in the gaza want, crossings shall be be opened and movement of goods and persons shall be be facilitated once the security situation becomes greater. There would be goods through israel to gaza and back through israel as well as through egypt. Other issues including Security Issues shall be discussed down the road by the two sides. So some of these theres no mention, by the way, of some of the other specific issues that youre talking about like the israels retaking some of these palestinians prisoners. Presumably that could be discussed because the egyptian proposal says within 48 hours of the cease fire they will welcome a high level israeli delegation to cairo and high level hamas delegation to cairo to work out the other details. Does that sound acceptable . Well, john, this is a silly idea. Its a joke. Its not politics. Really its a joke. We have tried that with the israelis. Sign the agreement and you will have a state in five years. We were supposed to have a fight 1998, and we are still now in 2014 and still under the occupation. They cant say that stop firing, the israelis will stop firing with the upper hand, they can fire whenever they want. You have to stop that. We will see if we can open the borders and give you the right to live without the Israeli Attacks. The idea here is simple. You have to stop you have to make an end for the occupation. You have to make a clear guarantee for the palestinians that they will not suffer an Israeli Attack anymore. They will not suffer any more from the israeli bombs or not suffer any more from the israeli threats. This is the idea. We cant live all the day under the threat of the israelis. What is written in this paper is not really initiative. Its not really an idea. What they are trying to do is to corner the palestinians and to help the israelis more. I dont believe that this is a political thing to be done. Its close to be a joke. Close to be a joke you say. Let me ask you this question because its a sensitive issue. Yeah, you know. Cease fire at the end of 2012, hold on a second, at the end of 2012, it was then Mohamed Morsi who is now in jail in egypt. I know you trusted Mohamed Morsi as the leadership of hamas, do you trust the new president of egypt, abdel fatah alcee see to probing broker an honest cease fire between hamas and israel . Well, let me say that we did not trust only mr. Ha mad morsi has a president. We trusted in 2008, 2009 and he was the broker. And we accepted his mediation. So simply the idea if any mediator has the a good mediation will accept that. When you are talking about the egyptian mediation im telling you clearly we did not receive this declared paper from the egyptians through the channels between us and the egyptians which means its an judiciaryiative. Its not a Political Initiative discussed by the palestinian side. I dont know if it was also discussed by the israelis. I have no idea. So if you want to trust the mediator, he has to do his work as hes supposed to be as a neutral and mediator which is not clear in this situation. Osama hamdan, the spokesman for hamas joining us tonight. Well continue to stay in touch with you and check back with you tomorrow. Well see if anything happens following the Israeli Security Cabinet Meeting first thing Tuesday Morning. Osama hamdan, you were with us friday night and with us tonight. Well continue this conversation. I know youre not very happy with the egyptian proposal. You call it in a joke in con trat the israelis say theyre taking it very seriously. Its good to have make some jokes in some situation. Its an awful situation. Why not to be too many palestinians unfortunately are being killed right now. Too many are being injured. It would be good to see it would be good to stop the fighting its a very all of situation. This is the idea. Its a very awful situation. Someone is trying to play games, not to be a mediator to solve the real problem. I hear what youre saying osama hamdan. Well check back with you tomorrow following the Israeli Security Cabinet Meeting. Well see what the reaction from hamas is. So far that reaction negative. Well have much more on the breaking news. The flus ambassador tore israel, Daniel Shapiro will get the u. S. Reaction. Hes in tel aviv. Much more on the breaking news. This is a situation room special report. Shopping online is as easy as it gets. Wouldnt it be great if hiring plumbers, carpenters and even piano tuners were just as simple . Thanks to angies list, now it is. Start shopping online from a list of toprated providers. Visit angieslist. Com today. He cadillac summer collection is here. During the cadillac summers best event, lease this 2014 ats for around 299 a month and make this the summer of style. Ive got a nice long life ahead. Big plans. So when i found out medicare doesnt pay all my medical expenses, i looked at my options. Then i got a Medicare Supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if youre eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80 of your part b medical expenses. The rest is up to you. 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Were coming to you live from jerusalem where were following the breaking news, egypt now calling for a halt to the fighting starting Tuesday Morning, 6 00 a. M. , greenwich meantime, offering to broker help maintain a ceasefire just as it did during the last Armed Conflict between israel and hamas nearly two years ago. Weve just learned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Israeli Security cabinet to meet first thing Tuesday Morning to review the proposal which a senior official tells me the Israeli Government is taking very seriously. We just heard a hamas spokesman on the other hand call the egyptian cease fire proposal in the words of osama hamdan, a joke. Lets talk about it with Daniel Shapiro joining us live from tel aviv. Mr. Ambassador thanks for joining us. I know we have a delay in our satellite between you and me. But tell us what the u. S. Reaction is. I assume the u. S. Is familiar with the egyptian proposal, the israelis say theyre taking it seriously. So far, the hamas group, mr. Hamdan is saying its a joke. What does the United States believe . Well, wolf, i think ill let my colleagues in washington give our First Official response to what the Egyptian Foreign Ministry published. Let me tell you this. Since the beginning of this conflict, the United States has taken the position, number one, this has been caused by the actions of a terrorist organization, hamas, firing rockets and missiles against civilian populations in israel which weve condemned. Number two is, israel had the right of self defense and we supported that right of selfdefense. Number three, its caused hardship and suffering for civilians on both sides. Israelis have had to run repeatedly to bomb shelters. Certainly there have been tragic casualties among palestinians in gaza which we deeply regret, as well. What was needed was a diplomatic effort that would allow, bring about an end to the rocket fire which would an deescalation and return to the calm that prevailed since 2012. All along, secretary of state kerry said to all the parties, to Prime Minister netanyahu, to the egyptians, Palestinian Authority other parties that the United States was available to work with those party whos could help construct such an arrangement. Obviously, egypt has a historic role in helping broker cease fires and ends to conflicts between israel and hamas and other terrorist organizations in gaza. So we know that egypt has a strong leadership role to play. Of course, secretary kerry has been in close touch with his egyptian colleagues, as well. Hell see how this develops. Our goal from the beginning has been to a deescalation and a better outcome for the civilian populations of both sides. Thats clearly what the egyptians have in mind, as well. I was surprised to hear the hamas spokesman call the proposal a joke saying formally it hasnt even been presented to the hamas leadership in gaza. They dont seem to be taking it very seriously right now. But you know, i understand what youre saying. What about the secretary of state . Theres been a lot of speculation he could get directly involved, go to egypt, go to qatar, maybe come here to israel. What are you hearing about his direct involvement in this . Well, i can tell you that from the beginning of this conflict, i think kerry was in china at the time, subsequently he was in afghanistan lately and currently, hes been in vienna for the iran nuclear talks. Throughout that period, hes been been actively eb engaged and spoken repeated little with Prime Minister nettenia shoe, counterparts in qatar, jordan, turkey, president an abbas of the Palestinian Authority making clear that the United States is supporting it israels right of selfdefense and working to deescalate the conflict with those parties. Secretary kerry as you know very well is always willing to go where hes needed to make a difference in our diplomatic efforts. But make no mistake, hes been deeply engaged on this working the telephones and meeting with colleagues in vienna, as well throughout this period. And obviously, were hopeful that the days and hours to come will lead to that end of the rocket fire and the deescalation and the return to the calm weve been calling for. That would be good to stop the fighting and air strikes from israel into gaza which have caused a lot of injuries among palestinians, a lot of innocent civilians and as you point out, the Chilling Effect here in israel. Rockets and missiles coming into israel. No deaths in israel. One final quell because youre an experienced diplomat. I just want to get your sense. The israelis have now gone into what i would describe as a silent mode. Usually theyre very talkative. Theyre not afraid to make their points. Once they said that the Israeli Cabinet was going to meet in the special session tomorrow morning to consider the egyptian cease fire proposal wiltheyre taking seriously this he canceled the chief spokesman for the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mark regular gov was supposed to be a guest here tonight, Lieutenant Colonel peter lerner, a chief spokesman for the Israel Defense forces. The fact theyre going on radio silence in advance of that Cabinet Meeting tomorrow morning, what does that say to you, mr. Ambassador . I think it says to me there is a serious Diplomatic Initiative under way. Thats something we welcome and provided our support for and that the Israeli Government obviously is taking it seriously and needs to have internal consultations and thats a time when they will understandably may not want to speak as fully in flick until certain decisions have been made. So i certainly understand that. Theyll im sure look at any proposal thats put forward and as i said, our goal is to help support them and others to achieve an end to their rocket fire and the des escalation. And to look ahead. Obviously, theres some history to these conflicts. After operation cast lead, the United States and many other countries worked to try to help stabilize the situation in gaza to improve the situation on the ground for the populations improve the flow of goods, also to work on removing weapons that come into the hands of hamas and anterrorist organizations. There were similar efforts that followed operation pillar of defense in 2012. Im sure it the Israeli Government will not only be looking at the Current Situation and how to achieve that will deescalation to come but how to try to prevent recurrence of this kind of i think in the future. Daniel shapiro, thanks very much for joining us. Well stay in close touch with you. Were also, by the way, later going to getting reaction from the Palestinian Authority side. The chief palestinian negotiator will be joining us live. Much more breaking news right after this. Narrator this is the storm sea captain theres a storm comin narrator that whipped through the turbine which poured. 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And still have time to spare. Check your speed. See how fast your internet can be. Switch now and add voice and tv for 34. 90. Comcast business. Built for business. Were going to have much more on the escalating crisis here in the middle east in a few moments. First other news, including eric holder revealing growing concerns about terror threats. Pamela brown reports. U. S. National Security Officials tell cnn its a top priority. The threat of u. S. And european citizens trained in jihad overseas and returning to their homeland. Its more frightening than anything i think ive seen as attorney general. This spring, a florida man sided with jihadists blowing himself up in syria. He was one of what u. S. Officials say are some 7,000 foreign fighters in syria, of that about 3,000 coming from europe and around 100 are americans. The justice departments Top National Security official john carlin tells cnn in an exclusive interview the government is actively monitoring american who have gone overseas. And make sure that we are able to observe disrupt them before they can come back to the United States or europe to cause harm. Reporter adding to their worry, those that are harder to keep track of. A major concern of ours are those people who come from other parts of the world who can travel freely within say the European Union and who have the ability to come to the United States without visas. Reporter american Officials Say there is another clear and present danger, bombmakers in yemen teaming up with terrorists in syria. A deadly combination. For those thinking about of traing abroad to join with terrorist groups, i would like them to know dont do it. Youre going to end up in jail or dead. Its not a step that you should take. Reporter and then theres isis, a terrorist group that split from al qaeda. Busy commandeering iraq and syria, at least for now. I think its a matter of time before they start looking outward and start looking at the west and at the United States in particular. Reporter in response to a new capability by terrorists officials are stepping up security measures overseas and for some passengers here in the u. S. Pamela brown, thanks very much. Coming up live from here in jerusalem, were following the breaking news. Storm israels security cabinet will discuss a proposal for a ceasefire. Our special report coming up at the top of the hour. train horn vo wherever our trains go, the economy comes to life. Norfolk southern. One line, infinite possibilities. And cialis for daily use helps you be Ready Anytime the moment is right. Cialis is also the only daily ed tablet approved to treat symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently. Tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. Do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. Do not drink alcohol in excess. Side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. To avoid long term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. If you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or any allergic reactions like rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. Ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a free 30tablet trial. Back to the breaking news on israel and hamas in a moment. But there is Severe Weather unfolding in the United States right now. Our meteorologist chad myers is standing by. Chad, whats going on . Big storms, one just moved through washington, d. C. , one just north of baltimore, one to new york city. The storms putting down very heavy rainfall. Yes, there could be wind damage with it. Im more concerned about late night and overnight flooding as these storms are going to go all night long. There are watches and also warnings in effect. If you get a storm over your house, stay inside. It will go away in 15 minutes. These are pretty fast movers. But flood watches are out, flood warnings are out. An awful lot of rain coming down. Part of very cold air coming down from the north. Not a polar vortex, we wont use that term. Just nice cold air coming in for this time of summer. Wolf . Chad, thanks very much. Coming up, were live from jerusalem. Well have the very latest on the breaking news about a proposed ceasefire. Happening now, in the situation room, a special report. Brink of war. Urgent new moves sets off warfare between israel and hamas. The u. S. May be getting involved as the death toll reaches a historic level. We dont know whats going on. Another tense day near the israel gaza border. We took cover from incoming fire. Stand by for my reporting from the relentless attacks. And in a serious scare in the air. Were learning more about why a jet was forced to make an Emergency Landing, stranding passengers for hours on a remote island. We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. Im wolf blitzer live from jerusalem. Youre in the situation room. Announcer this is cnn breaking news. Lets get right to the breaking news here in the middle east. The israeli Prime Minister benjamin nett anyahu is having emergency talks about a possible ceasefire with Palestinian Militants as the fighting raging. Theres a new Truce Initiative and john kerry, secretary of state, may head to the region soon to lay the ground work to 0 an end to the fighting that has taken a devastating toll. Officials in gaza now say 185 palestinians have been killed by israeli air strikes, more than those who actually died during the last military encounter between israel and hamas at the end of 2012. Our correspondents are standing by and well hear from both sides of this conflict. First, though, more of the latest developments tonight. You hear it . Oh, my god. Go, go, go, go panic filled moments like this playing out over and over again for people in israel and in gaza. We were at the heavily armed border at a sealedoff checkpoint when soldiers even took cover and so did we. We just heard shots. Were not exactly sure whats going on. Israel now says about 1,000 rockets have been fired from gaza. Some of them have landed in and around the border city. Theyre collected and examined at the local police station. There are a number of different rockets abandoned over the last 24, 48 hours striking in the heart of israel. Theyve been fired by the hamass, aimed at women and children and families. Soon after that interview, sirens blared. A rocket streaked overhead. And the iron dome Defense System intercepted it, showering the area with shrapnel. When youre this close to the border, you only have about 15 seconds to take shelter or risk being hit and possibly killed. Were here at a hill overlook the israeli town of sterote. You can see it, a beautiful little town. But its vulnerable, vulnerable to rockets coming from right over here. Thats not israel. Thats gaza. In gaza, israel now says it has struck about 1500 what it calls terror targets. But the u. N. Says 70 of those killed arent hamas fighters. Theyre civilians, including more than 30 children and two women killed when an israeli air strike hit a center for the disabled. And a father and son whose bodies were carried through the streets of gaza. Another funeral as the fighting goes on. Senior israeli Officials Say theyre taking a new egyptian ceasefire proposal very seriously. But when i talked to a hamas spokesman just a while ago, he dismissed the egyptian ceasefire plan. In his word, as a joke. Lets bring in our Senior International correspondent ben wed 0 ama wedeman. Hes in hamas. What are you hearing from the spokesman of hamas in beirut . He says the egyptians havent even delivered the proposal formally to the hamas leadership. Reporter yes. Well, we did get initial reaction from the spokesman for the Hamas Movement who simply rejected it and said that hamas has its own conditions that must be met first before there is a ceasefire. And of course initially when news came out that there might be a ceasefire, many gazans were quite happy. Theyre exhausted after eight days of these almost constant air strikes on gaza because if theres not a ceasefire, the future is going to look grim. Its the scene repeated hundreds of time in gaza over the last week. A house blown to bits in an israeli air raid. Its contents blasted into the road. No one was hurt this time here in northern gaza. The house next it door was hit 20 minutes ago. They received a threeminute warning. The problem is, okay, the house next door might be a target, but this one wasnt, and half of it is destroyed. The neighbor says there was no unusual activity in the house and like many here he doesnt understand why he and his family are being punished. My son isnt even here, he tells me. Hes working in libya. Only his wife is here. Is she fighting israel . This is tyranny. When we left that house, we saw another one being hit. Near gaza city, this 20yearold prays at the grave of his father and 17 others who were killed in an israeli air striking saturday evening. The bloodiest single strike since israel launched its offensive against gaza. He recalls he had a strange premonition the first day of the wa war. I looked at my fathers face. He looked strange, he recalls. I went to my room, closed the door. I knew he would die. I put my head on the pillow and cried for my father and all the other people who would die. There may be more to it than that, however. His father was a leader in hamas military wing. And in the compound where the extended family lives, we found what looked like reinforced tunnels. While the war rages on with no end in sight, men in jabaliya for what passes for ordinary life here. Lining up at a United Nations center to receive their rations, flour, rice, cooking oil and sugar, rations like these make the difference between survival and starvation in this impoverished sliver of land, stuck between poverty and war with no way out. On the bright side, however, its been relatively quiet this evening. The quietest evening weve seen yet. Wolf . May be an encouraging sign, even if the rhetoric from hamas continues to be negative as far as this egyptian ceasefire proposal is concerned. Ben, thanks very much. The fate of the new ceasefire proposal depends in part on leaders of hamas and if it they can get past of their initial rejection of this new proposal. Lets get more on the hamas leadership. Brian todd has been working this part of the story for us. Brian, what are you finding out . Wolf, hamas leadership is under immense pressure tonight, but at the same time flexing their muscles. We have seen one part of the image that hamass is trying to project, showing off that military sophistication its using to take on israel, trying to show the world its more than just a simple militant group. This is video of an aerial drone, one of several hamas says it is sending on missions inside israel. Experts say the pictures symbolize hamas ambition. Ambition they say driven by fractured leadership beset with internal rivalries and divided by military wings that sometimes dont communicate. We dont target the civilians. I dont like to shed any drop of blood. Reporter thats hamas top political leader and often its public face. In a 2012 interview with christiane amanpour. A former teacher, he operates mostly are from qatar and is known as the external deal maker getting money and weapons from players like iran. Despite his George Clooney type looks hes very much a dangerous man because he aids and abets hamas very destructive policies and strategies. Reporter hamas two other top political leaders are believed to be operating in gaza and living in e0 jiegypt. One of them just spoke to the media. Theyve called themselves the resistance, the u. S. And israel call them terrorists. But tonight experts wonder if theyre still calling the shots. Its very much believed that the political leadership, wing, inside gaza and externally with counseling with restraint. The military wing had other ideas. Reporter that military wing is led by a shadowy figure who has survived multiple sasses nation attempts. He was injured years ago and is believed to have handed some of the operational role to other top hamas leaders. His forte unconventional attacks on israel, such as the ones this month. That could be Naval Commando infiltrations inside israel weve seen over the past few days. It could be these kidnapping or offensive type operations through attack tunnels underneath the gaza border inside israel. And its that kind of tactic which analysts say may have made him one of iz reelds chief targets in this operation, possibly a more high value target than any of hamas political leaders right now if theres not going to be a ceasefire imminent, wolf. And if theres a real split as there apparently is among that hamas leadership, a ceasefire acceptance poornt of hamas becomes more difficult and complicated. Brian todd, thanks very much. Joining us now is the chief palestinian negotiator. Hes joining us on the phone from jericho on the west bank. Thanks, as usual. Were getting relatively positive reaction from the ra Israeli Government. They say theyre taking the egyptian proposal very seriously. I spoke to a hamas spokesman in beirut. He says the egyptian proposal is a joke. What is the Palestinian Authority leadership and you are among that leadership think of this egyptian proposal that the Foreign Ministry in cairo made public . We welcome it. Strong lly welcome it. I had the conversation with the egyptian foreign minister, and he also had a conversation. He shared with us the exact intention of the egyptian proposal. They would specify hopefully in the next few hours, zero hour for a ceasefire, and then they will begin speaking to the palestinian leadership and palestinian factions. So now just about 40 minutes ago the minister spoke to the arab ministers convening now in cairo, and i think the majority or all of the arab Foreign Ministers have welcomed the initiative. You know, wolf, that if there is any possibility for a ceasefire, if there is any possibility to come to agreement it will have to be an egyptian proposal. Thats the political geography and thats whats needed today. So i believe its premature to jump to conclusion about what hamas says because i know that some other leaders in hamas have said, we are not closing any doors for any initiative for a ceasefire. So lets hope, lets work, see what mr. John kerry will be doing in cairo. Im sure that he will put all of his efforts so the egyptians, countries like the arab league tonight, the arab world will put their backing to the egyptian proposal, fully ensuring this proposal. Im really hopeful we will see some real, real serious possible ceasefire in the next 12 to 24 hours. That would be great if the deaths in gaza could stop, the injuries, the rockets coming into israel. A ceasefire would be excellent news. But i want you to listen to what asama hamdan told me within the past hour, listen to this. This is a silly idea. Its a joke. Its not politics. Its a joke. He says its a joke, a silly idea. And he also says that hamas has not even formally received the egyptian proposals in a document. Why would he say that . Im sure that once he receives the official egyptian offer and proposal, they will. Because to say its a joke before even he reads it, he said he hasnt received it, the egyptians plan to bring hamas Leaders Within the next few hours to cairo to discuss this with them. As i said, they shared this with us. They share this with the arab leaders. Im sure theyre sharing this with the europeans, the americans, the russians, everyone. So if there is any sign of hope to stop this cycle of violence, to stop the killing fields out there, to stop the killing of women and destruction of gaza, what we need to do now is to exert every possible effort in order to ensure that egypt will succeed. Thats what wre need now. What we need is the deescalation and i think the only game in town 0 is this egyptian effort. We fully back this effort and im sure that many leaders of hamas once they read the proposal and share it with the egyptians theyll be fully on board. And i was told by some hamass leaders they would not close the door in the face of any effort to bringing about a ceasefire. Thats encouraging news. Lets continue this conversation. Well talk to you again tomorrow, see what the Israeli Cabinet decides, see what john kerrys plans are, see how the egyptian proposal is going with the palestinians in gaza, the hamas leadership. The chief palestinian negotiator. Coming up, were live here in jerusalem. Much more on the breaking news, troops still poised on the gaza border for a possible Ground Invasion. Were looking at the Israeli Military strategy as the efforts toward a ceasefire unfolds. Later, Airline Passengers feared they would die when their plane made an Emergency Landing on an isolated island. Were learning more about that nightmare. Stay with us. 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If youre still just managing your symptoms, ask your gastroenterologist about humira. With humira, remission is possible. Ask your gastroenterologist about humira. You fifteen percent or more on huh, fiftCar Insurance. Uld save yeah, Everybody Knows that. Well, did you know that playing cards with kenny rogers gets old pretty fast . You got to know when to holdem. Know when to fold em. Know when to walk away. Know when to run. You never count your money, when youre sitting at the ta. What . You get it . I get the gist, yeah. Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on Car Insurance. Were back live from jerusalem. Even as there are new moves to a possible ceasefire, Israeli Forces remain poised for a possible Ground Invasion of gaza. Our pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr takes us inside isra israels military strategy. Reporter wolf, the question now is, with all the talk of a potential ceasefire, how much of hamas capability will israel try to destroy, and what strategy will they use before a potential agreement may go into effect . Israeli tanks and Ground Forces massing, firing into gaza from the israeli side of the border. This is just a fraction of the 3,000 tanks and nearly 1,000 artillery pieces in the israeli arsenal. Overwhelming firepower if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a Ground Invasion. On cbs face the nation, he didnt rule it out. We use whatever means are necessary to defend our people. Reporter so far, 40,000 reservists have been called up, but israel knows the human toll of a ground war potentially catastrophic. How long can both sides hold out and whether both sides will now turn to some type of diplomatic option. Israel i know would like 0 to avoid a Ground Invasion of gaza, that would probably cost a great number of israeli lives, certainly a greater number of palestinian lives. Reporter ground action so far remains limited. It looks to me like the israelis are trying not to have to go in there on the ground. Its densely populated. There are going to be a lot of civilian casualties. No way to avoid it. Reporter but israel shows no letup in its punishing air strikes in gaza that have resulted in dozens of civilian deaths according to palestinian authorities. With more than 100 fighter jets, israel could keep it up indefinitely, but the question remains, could an israeli strategy of air strikes and limited ground action change the situation . The israelis have hit 1400 targets and they have yet to stop hamas from firing rockets. The u. S. Decision remains it wants to see deescalation of this crisis, but if we are coming up towards a potential ceasefire, one of the things the u. S. Is watching very carefully is to 0 see whether israel escalates, gets more aggressive with its attacks in the final hours, what may be the final hours, of this crisis if there were to be a ceasefire agreement. Wolf . Barbara starr, thanks very much. As i reported, the israelis are taking this egyptian ceasefire proposal very seriously in advance of their special Israeli Special security Cabinet Meeting. Theyve gone basically on radio silence. Weve had two israeli guests who were booked to be on this program here in the situation room, but the chief spokesman for Benjamin Netanyahu and the spokesman for the idf, the Israel Defense forces, were supposed to be here but now theyve decided they wont say anything in advance of the Israeli Cabinet meeting. So they asked not to come in tonight. Hopefully theyll be back tomorrow. Just ahead, a plane takes dramatic action as passengers fear for their lives. Stay with us. Youre in the situation room. Were live from jerusalem. 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Were coming to you live from jerusalem where were following developments in the skirmishes between israel and hamas. Were also following a frightening ordeal that unfolded high over the pacific ocean. Cnns tom foreman has details. Reporter the evening flight from honolulu to guam took over late too soar over some of the most desolate waters on the planet. Passengers say a strong odor filled the jet. We could smell chemical smell like burned wire or heated wire, burned insulation, Something Like 0 that. It was worafting through the cabin. Reporter some say the stench nearly gagged them, and the crew made the dramatic decision to divert to the tiny island of midway, riding out turbulence and at one point suddenly dropping 40 feet. I think after the 40foot drop it got really silent in the cabin. People pray. We all prayed. Reporter a nail biting hour later, touchdown. Nice to step out. Reporter the airline now says the problem was an equipment cooling fan not necessary for flight. Theres a regular one and a backup fan. So if the primary one fails, the backup will kick in automatically. Reporter but keith wolz inninger who flies these kind of planes says especially after so much open water, caution is critical. If youre not sure what the problem is, the first rule is to divert, get the airplane on the ground and worry about it later. Reporter the passengers spent seven hours on the island with few services, mostly hanging out no a gymnasium. When another plane finally arrived, cheering for the endz of their long, nerveracking journey. A potentially deadly conclusion narrowly averted. Wolf . Tom foreman, thanks very much. Thats it for me. Im wolf blitzer live in jerusal jerusalem. Cross fire starts right now. Wolf, thank you for that. Stay safe in jerusalem. Meanwhi meanwhile, here in america, two republican wannabe president ial kandz dats are calling each other names. But they both have something the Obama White House desperately lacks, real ideas. The debate starts now. Announcer tonight, political war hits washington. Rick perry versus rand paul on iraq. Its a