[gunfire and blasts] >> hopefully it goes up, but our canadian embassy did not contact due to the bad network services. we have a little hope to leave and save our lives. >> john: any moment now, the state department will provide an update on israel's war with hamas as a crucial border crossing opens for evacuations from gaza, and president biden posting on x moments ago, he expects americans will be among the people getting out. hello, john roberts in washington. sandra, good to be back. >> sandra: i'm sandra smith in new york. a lot should be developing in the next couple of hours as we see dozens of foreign nationals, many of them badly injured lining up at the rafah crossing between gaza and egypt, desperate to flee the fighting that has gotten more intense since israeli troops began moving in last week. >> john: the first batch of evacuations came after qatar officials secured a deal to allow people to get to safety. it is unclear when americans will be allowed to leave and how long that crossing gate will be open. >> sandra: fox team coverage to kick things off over the next couple hours and the breaking news from the war in the middle east. begin with trey yingst live on the ground in southern israel. we have an update from the idf on how many troops have been killed in gaza. what can you tell us? >> yeah, sandra, good afternoon. we have just returned from the front line, the border between israel and gaza, and the israelis tonight updating us that 16 of their soldiers were killed over the past two days during gun battles with hamas militants. we could hear some of the fire along the border, and small arms and also the israelis using attack helicopters and air support to try to push those infantry troops deeper into the gaza strip. the israelis have released some new video of their forces operating inside gaza, you can already see the street to street battle, block to block fight, incredibly difficult and expected to take months. we talked about the air support. israelis targeted the jabalia refugee camp in the northern part of the gaza strip. they say they killed the batallion commander for hamas in the northern part of gaza. a significant target for the israelis but they are facing new questions about the civilian casualties in that strike as they gather more information about exactly how many people died. now, amid these tragic updates on both sides of the border, we want to take you to the rafah crossings, border between egypt and gaza, good news to report. after weeks of negotiations, qataris were able to cut a deal between hamas, israel and egypt, allow 335 foreign nationals to leave, along with 76 injured palestinians who are in desperate need of m ed kal attention. we do expect those numbers to rise in the coming days as the crossing is expected to remain open. sandra. >> sandra: what can you tell us about the americans trying to get out? >> we know there are hundreds of american citizens trying to get out. we do expect to get some more specific numbers from the state department momentarily. but should note, not all americans were able to make it out of the gaza strip and we know that, we are talking with u.s. citizens inside gaza. i spoke with one woman, her son was on the list to leave because he has a jordanian passport also, this is a family from utah, they have been trapped inside gaza since the massacre in southern israel on october 7th. sandra. >> sandra: trey, thank you. john. >> difficult time for folks there. fbi director christopher wray with the stark warning, attacks could inspire the most significant terror threat to the united states since the rise of isis. what police departments should be doing to stay vigilant. david, the fbi director was asked if threats are elevated more since president biden took office. what did he say? >> john, he said yes, the threat level is elevated since president biden took office in january 2021. but fbi director wray who does not mince words added a caveat that law enforcement is more ready now than three years ago. >> we also cannot and do not discount the possibility that hamas or another foreign terrorist organization may exploit the current conflict to conduct attacks here on our own soil. >> he also made news by saying multiple investigations into people here in the united states with connections to hamas. some cases direct ties, john, and other cases indirect ties. people that may be inspired by hamas. here is wray on october 18th, a few weeks ago, during an interview about lone wolfs. >> we are particularly vigilant to the possibility that lone actors here in the united states could in some way out of inspiration misguided inspiration they draw from the conflict in the middle east. >> regarding a rise in anti-semitism, he told senators the jewish community is uniquely targeted by terrorist organizations across the spectrum. >> when you look at a group that makes up 2.4% roughly of the american population, it should be jarring to everyone that accounts for something like 60% of all religious-based hate crimes. and so they need our help. >> john, i've covered the direct for several words, he chooses his words incredibly carefully and a difference a few weeks ago in california to what he's saying now. he has a lot of intelligence before him and clearly his rhetoric has elevated over the past few weeks. >> john: he pretty much gets to see it all. sandra. >> sandra: moments away from the state department briefing on the ongoing conflict in the middle east. antony blinken putting the focus on the 240 hostages trapped in gaza. the department is under fire over a foreign service officer who publicly called jewish people the enemy. rich edson has the latest for us. what did the staffer say? >> a lot, sandra. fritz bergren a very active blogger, anti-semitic blocks, calling jews a threat to christian nations and foreign service officer at state. the department has known about the posts like this for years. just this um isser, senator chuck grassley sent the state department a letter asking if bergren still work there and if so, what he does for state. grassley got no response. this week he wrote blinken again. >> i have simply asked the state department some questions from the standpoint of the moral leadership of the united states around the world. do we want somebody anti-semitic working for us, and if there is a justification for it, i am an asking for that. >> bergren posted it's tough to stay employed when a u.s. senator demands one's termination. they say it's discriminatory. >> the secretary has spoken to this publicly, special envoy has spoken about this on a number of occasions and will continue to work to root it out around the world as we try to root it out here at home, but i unfortunately, because of privacy reasons and federal statutes cannot speak to an individual employees' case. >> in a senate hearing yesterday, mayorkas, several republicans are demanding a dhs employee be fired. a citizenship and immigration officer, they say she posted anti-semitic rhetoric on several social media pages immediately following the october 7th terrorist attacks on israel. the department says she is on administrative leave. sandra. >> sandra: rich, thank you. john. >> john: the state department will likely face plenty of questions what's being done to rescue the hundreds held hostage in gaza. u.s. and israel have been relying on qatari officials. the spokesperson for benjamin netanyahu, tal, good to catch up with you. israeli security apparatus says it will kill any hamas member that has anything to do with october 7th. but if hamas leaders think they are done for, very little for them to release the hostages. and adam boehler brought thup yest -- brought this up yesterday, would there be a way for them to survive in exchange for exile in exchange for hostages. >> john, appreciate your question but for obvious reasons i'm not going to further expand about any strategy about how to deal with the hostage situation that obviously is making things for us right now very complex on the ground as we operate in gaza with the goal of dismantling and eliminating the hamas regime. governor's bodies and military wing but our top priority is bring back our sons and daughters. so we are seeing international pressure is working on hamas. why we call on the nations of the civilized world, back us up in this demand that hamas would release them unconditionally and equivocally. and also see the red cross examine these hostages, get some access to them. some families 240 families here in israel have no clue about the condition in which their loved ones are being held captive in gaza for 25 days. so, we want to see this happening. i can tell you that our expanded ground operation right now in gaza is working in these two dimensions, towards two end goals we have defined for this war that we did not want and did not start. >> but even as the ground operation began on friday night, the mossad director was in qatar speaking with officials there about the hostage situation. qatar was involved in the release of the very first two hostages. the american ones. what role does israel think qatar could play here in getting more of the hostages out? >> i cannot divulge much information in that respect and i'm sure you understand why, for very, very obvious reasons here. but i can tell you that we are working with our international partners, including with our best friend, the united states, to bring to the release of the hostages and everything that we are doing right now on the diplomatic arena and on the military level on the ground is focused on that end as well as to dismantle hamas. >> john: i wanted to ask you about the jabalia neighborhood, i understand was struck again today. israel insists it's going after legitimate military targets but hamas is telling the world civilians are perishing by the dozens. we know hamas likes to keep civilians in harm's way, encouraged them not to leave northern gaza for the safe zone in southern gaza, and they have prevented them from doing so. scenes like this unfold, international pressure builds on israel. to tone things down or maybe even go for a full ceasefire. my question, tal, is what more, if anything, can israel do with circumstances like this to limit civilian casualties? >> i can assure you that israel is doing everything possible. we are acting in a very surgical way in gaza to minimize civilian casualties and as you said, john, it is the interest of hamas to maximize civilian casualties. this is exactly what they want. for two reasons. well, because it puts the pressure on israel, and it serves their military machine. you see when international players, international media outlets or the community, united nations, when they put pressure on israel, because of the very sick murderous hamas methods of using palestinian civilians as human shields, it achieves their goal. they are playing right into the strategy of hamas. so, what we need to do as the nations of the civilized world is sending exactly the opposite message. unequivocal message that terrorism is a dead end and it will not be accepted. putting the pressure on israel amplifies hamas. they will do it again and again and again, and in different arenas with the foreign nationals and the hostages, we see that international pressure against hamas is in fact working. so it is important that we keep, ratchet up the international pressure on hamas because it is working. we are doing it militarily and we need it to be a diplomatic pressure as well. i'm asking, where are the protests against hamas, where are they? where is the vast media coverage of who hamas are. true nature. their history. all of that. where is the international pressure on iran that funds hamas. this is what we need to see if we want to help israeli and palestinian civilians. >> john: tal, if israel hopes to cut off the head of the snake, if you will, of hamas, one target is very problematic for you, that's the al-shifa hospital. idf spokesman has gone to great lengths to say this is where hamas has its headquarters, we are looking at some animation the idf provided showing what the labyrinth looks like. a possible predicate to go after the hospital but if you do you know what the international reaction would be. how do you cut off the head of the snake without bringing condemnation on israel for attacking the hospital? >> that is something our military leadership and our government is working on right now, and we are not saying that we are going to strike the hospital, operate will or not do so. the reason we put out the images, the detailed presentation that you played here before of the idf spokesperson unit is because we wanted to show the world the cynical use of civilian hospitals, like civilian instructors, like hospitals, youth center, schools, as human shields for hamas bunkers and tunnels. >> john: tal heinrich, always good to catch up with you and get the latest from the pmo. appreciate it, see you soon. sandra. >> sandra: emotional scene right here in new york city. a group of new yorkers blocking a man from tearing down posters of jewish children being held captive by hamas terrorists. watch this. >> don't [bleep] touch me. no, don't [bleep] me. no, don't touch me. i don't give a [bleep]. you are a scum bag. >> you know the reason he's doing it. shut your [bleep] -- >> he wasn't doing anything. >> yes he was, he was ripping the [bleep] signs down. >> sandra: police say the man was arrested at the scene and is now facing several charges. john, i saw a bunch of these -- the pictures of the kidnapped children this morning on my way in. they are up in many places in new york city. but there's two things in this viral video that people are saying the most. one, how appalling it is the man would want to take down pictures of kidnapped children. and two, a moment you go this is what makes americans, new yorkers great, they banded together and stood up to that man, and what is making it go so viral right now. >> john: you notice he has sag over his face so you cannot see who he is. i was at the original wall of the missing outside the defense ministry in tel aviv and reminded me of the wall of the missing of downtown new york at ground 0 after 9/11, and for a supporter, i don't want to say a supporter of hamas, maybe this guy is not a supporter of hamas, but somebody to come along and take down those photos, would be akin to somebody who has sympathy for al-qaeda to take down the photos of the missing after 9/11. it doesn't make sense in a civilized world. >> sandra: heartbreaking to see, that is for sure, john. >> are we safer than when joe biden took office, the day he took office? >> what i would say to you, the terror threats have elevated. >> john: what did the thought bubble above his head say? the fbi director slow to respond when asking if the biden administration is keeping americans safe and if the threat has only increased since war broke out in the middle east. paul mauro tells us how city departments ought to respond coming up next. >> sandra: a cornell university student due in court a short time from now after allegedly making a massive threat to his jewish peers. we are live on campus with reaction coming up. >> it's not a matter of, you know, if there's going to be a future attack against jewish students on a campus, it is a matter of when. homeowner, and the family bookkeeper, you're the first to know when high rate debt is stressing your budget. but your family's service has earned you a big advantage. the va home loan benefit. with the lower rate newday 100 va cash out loan, you can pay off high rate credit cards and car loans. and can save $6,000 a year. that's real money you can use to take care of your family and home. ♪ if you struggle. ♪ and struggle. ♪ and struggle with cpap. you should check out inspire. ♪ no mask. no hose. just sleep. inspire. sleep apnea innovation. learn more and view important safety information at inspiresleep.com (christina) with verizon business unlimited, i get 5g, truly unlimited data, and unlimited hotspot data. so, no matter what, i'm running this kitchen. 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