Welcome to MEET THE press. Now I'm Kristen Welker. We begin this hour with the urgent search for the suspect considered armed and dangerous after one of the deadliest mass shootings in modern American history. Police say 18 people were killed and more than a dozen others injured when a gunman opened fire last night inside a bowling alley in nearby bar in Lewiston, Maine.
These are surveillance images of the suspect, 40 year old Robert Card. Police say he opened fire just before 7pm Inside the bowling alley. One man who was also inside described the chaos when the shots rang out. Go inside and smoked my bowling.
And out of nowhere he just came in and there was a loud pop. That was a balloon. I had a back turn from the door and as soon as I turned this off, there was nothing. Weapon.
I just booked it down the lane and I slid basically into where the pigs are and climbed up the machine and was on top of the machines for about 10 minutes until the cops got there. Now about 10 minutes later, police say Card opened fire inside a bar about four miles away. Law enforcement provided an update on their investigation earlier today. Take a listen.
A large law enforcement response from multiple surrounding agencies assisted the Lewiston Police Department in trying to identify who this individual was, what was happening. As you can imagine, this was a very fast paced, fast moving, very fluid scene, very dangerous scene that these guys and girls are going into. Authorities say Card is an army reservist and was a trained firearms instructor. According to a law enforcement bulletin, Card was committed to a mental health facility for two weeks this summer.
And he, quote, recently reported mental health issues to include hearing voices and threats to shoot up a National Guard base. And just minutes ago, four senior law enforcement officials told NBC News a note was found during a search of Cards home. They're now trying to determine the meaning of the note and how it could guide the investigation. At the White House, President Biden is urging area residents to heed the warnings and guidance of local officials.
And Vice President Harris addressed the tragedy while speaking at an event at the State Department today. Last night, Lewiston became yet another community torn apart by senseless gun violence. Once again, routine gatherings, this time at a bowling alley and restaurant, have been turned into scenes of horrific carnage. Gun violence has terrorized and traumatized so many of our communities in this country.
And let us be clear, it does not have to be this way. Now to put last night's tragic events into perspective, there have now been at least 565 mass shootings in the US this year. That's according to the gun violence archive that includes 31 mass murders and more than 35, 000 gun related deaths. With at least 18 people dead, Lewiston becomes the 10th deadliest mass shooting in American history.
Joining me now in Lewiston, two of my NBC News colleagues, Raheema Ellis and Tony Hilton. Also with me is NBC News investigative correspondent Tom Winter. Rahema, I want to start with you. Here we are again talking about a horrific mass shooting that has ripped yet another American community apart.
What is the very latest? You are there on the ground. What are you hearing? What are you seeing?
Rahma I think it's important to reiterate what you said just a moment ago. According to senior law enforcement, authorities are telling NBC News that they have found a note in the suspect's home. The details of that note, the character of it, where it was found, we don't know any of that, but we suspect I'm sure people in this community hope that it will lead authorities to some kind of information that can lead them to the suspect and to some reason for what happened here in this community. The rolling alley you talked about says just down the road behind me it was youth night and that's where the first shooting began.
After that, four miles down the road, 12 minutes later at a bar, the second shooting and at the end of it, we're told that some 18 people were killed and at the moment only eight of them have been identified. Investments of frustrating to authorities and to not authorities so much as to families. We should also mention to you that a shelter in place order was recently reissued in this community and for the neighboring county, telling people essentially that the threat is still real and they want them to stay hunkered down in their homes. And for the most part that's what people have been doing here today.
Rahima, I want to follow up with you on that point. I mean Maine is considered a safe state when you look at the crime statistics, when you look at the shootings year to year. And as you say, people are now sheltering in place. I have a friend who's there sheltering with her children close by.
Talk about how that is impacting the people who live in the community there. Rahima as you point out, Kristen, the history of this community, this state is that all of last year they had 29 homicides and just overnight they had 18 people killed. It is devastating. As one resident here told me just as while ago, born, bred and raised in this community, has seen tragedies in other parts of the country and said quite graphically to me that he and his wife said to themselves, we mourn for the people in other communities and we are grateful that it couldn't happen here.
Well, last night it happened here and it happened in a devastating way that has shut this community down, that has put a pall of fear over places. And you can feel it. I felt it when I came to this community this morning driving down the road and the fast food stores are closed, the restaurants are closed, the schools are closed, the businesses are closed because authorities are asking people that the thing that they can do to stay safe is to shelter in place. Hey, Malice, thank you for your incredible reporting as always.
I know it is just devastating to be there, to be talking to the victims, their family members, the people who are living through this. I want to turn to Antonia Hilton. Antonia, you are there outside of the hospital where some of the shooting victims were taken. What do you know at this hour about their conditions?
Well, Kristen, we know that there are three people still in critical condition in the central medical facility behind me here. And I actually got to talk to one resident who came by just a few hours ago who described being here last night watching people essentially pouring into the emergency room behind me here, seeing what she described as a mix of young people and adults. Although authorities haven't yet confirmed the number of minors who have been affected, community members say they know that minors were affected in part because they know that it was youth night at the bowling alley. And you know, this is a tight knit community.
People really know each other here. They hang out at these locations. They went to high school here. Are they.
Then they came back here and they raised their own families here. And so they know the victims. And that is excruciating and it is devastating on its own. Then when you add the fact that everyone is sheltering, I mean, you won't be able to see behind me here, but around the perimeter of the hospital, there are officers with long guns and they say they're here so long as the shelter in place order is here.
And that's because this is an active threat. So the fact that they can't even, you know, have the peace of mind that this person has been apprehended, that they understand, you know, a bit of a motive. None of that has quite come in clear terms yet. There is that active fear.
People described turning their lights off last night because they didn't want someone traveling in the woods to see their home and make it a target. They locked up their barns, they locked up their cars. They're still doing that right now as we head back into the evening. And so there is that palpable fear here.
And everyone that I talk to has sort of been in a state of shock. One woman told me that, you know, this just isn't the kind of thing that happens here in this town. And so that's the kind of, I guess, the sort of psychological aspect of all this that has been so incredibly painful. But, you know, we know that there are 10 people who haven't even yet been identified in part because of the horrors that automatic weapons like this, you know, it unleashes on its victims.
It means that there are at minimum 10 families waiting for, you know, the worst news possible. And so everyone's kind of hanging their own edge. They're in limbo until we hear more from authorities for sin. It is just heart wrenching to think about Antonia and you report on it so well and so thoroughly.
And I want to ask you and Rahima to please be safe as you continue your incredible reporting there on the ground. Thank you so much, Tom, I want to turn to you. And we started this segment talking about the note that was found at the suspect's home. Rahema mentioned it.
What is the significance of the fact that they have now found a note? Right, Kristen? So, you know, in the course of this, at this point, unfortunately, I think we're all so familiar with what happens during the course of these investigations. They fan out to the various areas where the suspect was, they get a court authorized search to go through the vehicle which we saw last night, to go through the home, any sort of other properties that this person may have and allows them to that point catalog it and be used eventually potentially for prosecution.
But in a case like this where you're trying to find somebody, any sort of clue, any sort of writings left behind, any sort of messages want to be on the computer can be also helpful in trying to determine what was this person's intent and what could they be doing. Now to that end, we are told by four senior law enforcement officials, myself and colleague Jonathan Deans, that there was a note found. They're looking at the note to see what the intent of it is, the specific meaning of it, and then how that can further guide their investigation. In trying to determine where in fact card is located, it's important for people to know he still has not been found.
There's still a very much an active manhunt. So there's nothing about this note that concludes law enforcement's work at this time. What is the very latest on the search for this suspect? He has been called armed and extremely dangerous for all of the obvious reasons by law enforcement officials.
And as I've been watching your reporting throughout the day, you've been talking about the fact that the terrain of the state itself could make the state more complicated 100%. I mean, you look at the fact that it's a rural area once you get outside Lewis, and you can look at the maps throughout the day, it's all green, it's all vegetation. He has some additional properties which are also heavily wooded. He obviously knows this area.
He's from there, he's got connections to this area. So, yeah, you see it right there as the river kind of goes through, you see Lewiston. But then outside of it, it gets very rural very quickly. And so if you have somebody that's familiar with it that has army training, that has this type of weapon, the same weapon that he's going to be, for all intents and purposes, is gonna be the same weapon that law enforcement's gonna be bringing with them.
As they try to search for this individual, it becomes a very dangerous situation. So I think the sooner that they can know what's inside of his head, knowing obviously the mental health component of this picture, the better for them. And the sooner he can be found, obviously, the better for these communities. Just to follow up with you on that point.
As you've reported, he was a firearms trainer. He has this background in the Army. Do we know why he was in a mental health facility earlier this summer? Sure.
So our colleague Khalilini reported this out and apparently according to a couple people that can't been able to speak to in a law enforcement world, he made certain statements that were very troubling to people that were at the military base and also made some specific threats. And at that point they determined it was time for him to go and seek some help. Now, whether that should have triggered Maine's yellow flag laws, which would have perhaps result removal of this weapon which was purchased prior to that mental health incident and was purchased legally, as we reported earlier today. Those will all be questions will be answered in the coming days, Chris, and for now, I think their focus is finding him.
But certainly were there any steps that were missed here? Is there anything they can learn in future cases that will all be part of this? As you can just be very clear, yellow flag laws effectively mean that authorities can essentially refer someone to be reviewed by a medical health professional and then ultimately petition for this person to not be allowed to hold firearms. They aren't as tough as red flag laws.
Right, right. Each state is different, I could say red flag laws and describe them across four or five different states. Give you very different criteria depending upon the state involved in the judiciary, the vault in law enforcement, mental health professionals, even family members. In certain states, family members can make a petition to the court for this saying, you know, hey, my relative Kristen, I think they're in some trouble.
Maybe we want to just get them away from their guns for a while and get them the help that they need. So ye, it is very state to state dependent. There's not some sort of universal law. And so you're correct, this is not the same as some states which is, I would say a much wider lane for engaging in the idea of taking away these weapons.
Not clear that the yellow flag law was even triggered but Dr. Incredible. Reporting the early hours of this evolving situation, I now want to bring in former ATF special Agent in charge Jim Cavanaugh. Jim, thank you so much for joining us on what is yet another tragic day in this country.
Pick up where Tom left off. What is the process of trying to find and locate an at large shooter? Gym, you know, search of what areas? Wooded areas because are you there?
Yes, we hear you now, Jim. Yes, we hear you now. Take it away. All right.
You know, it's very challenging because they have to do a search of wood there areas where it might be unflit and they also have to, you know, consider that they might have fled the area in a vehicle or an accomplice or on a boat even. Anyway he left as far at a dock. So there's a lot of ways he could have egressed the area. The finding of the note is significant.
It may be a suicide note. I mean often that is what happens in these cases. That's possible. Or it could at least tell us who he is angry at, you know, who he hates or who he wants to kill.
And that may give some leads to the commanders who maybe ought to be looking over here or looking over there. So it's going to be important because it's going to be a picture of his mind. And you know, the other thing is was the note left with the intention for law enforcement officers to find it or not? So all these things will play into it.
And the behavioral analysis section from FBI which also has ATF agents in it, they'll look at that and they'll advise the commanders and say, you know, it could be this, could be that. Consider this, consider that so they can widen their search. I mean if they have 350 officers and agents up There, you know, they can make unique teams to go to certain places depending on where, where things may be happening. So that's a significant development.
Otherwise it's, you know, he could be dead, he could have killed himself already and he just haven't found his body. I mean, that's clearly happens in, you know, 35% of these cases, maybe 40%. And if it's a suicide note, I mean, that could very well have already happened. But you can't rely on that, Kristen.
If you're a commander, you got to play it like he's gonna come out of the woods and he's going to start shooting and he's going to take off. You know, attacks of innocent people. And that's the only real play you can have. You can't have another plane than that.
You got to work that until you. Yeah, yeah. To follow up on that point, just how dangerous is this search for law enforcement officials given that if he is still alive, you know, it's very dangerous because you see the rifle, he's configured with a scope. And so what he can is he can fire long distance.
He's a firearms instructor, so he's trained so he can barricade in the woods or a cabin or even if he stopped in a vehicle and with that scope, he could take a long and kill an agent or a trooper. It's very, very dangerous. Now, when he went in, you know, some people want to call that rifle a sniper rifle. But when he went into the bowling alley and he went into to shoot the people in the bar, he was not using that rifle as sniper rifle because he was in proximity to the victims.
He was close, in the bowling alley, close to the bar, and he, he was shooting. You know, he didn't need to have a sniper rifle to do that. He was using that as an assault weapon. Now, if he's out of the rural area, he can use that same configuration because he's got this collapsible stock, he has the optics on the top.
He's, you know, obviously trained and experienced firearms instructor and he can use that rifle as a sniper rifle. So it can work both ways for him. He's a very deadly guy. A very deadly guy.
I want to flag this update, Jim, which is that Senator Susan Collins, Representative Jared golden, the Lewiston City Council and police officials will hold a 5:30pm Eastern press conference at the Lewiston City Hall. We will of course be tracking that and bring our viewers any developments as we get them. Talk a little bit about if this suspect is still alive, what Is his mindset right now? Jim, I've heard you throughout the day talk about the fact that if he's still alive, he could potentially be feeling emboldened in this moment.
What's the significance? No, it's right, Chris. And I think that if he is alive, and that's the question, because he could, he could have killed himself already. But if he's alive, I think he's feeling very powerful now.
I mean, he had two different locations where he, you know, wreaked havoc, wreaked havoc on this town. He, he, he killed all those young people at the bowling alley, he went to the bar. I mean, he has been the punisher in his mind, you know, the killer, the mass killer. And he's got this rifle which he is very in tune with.
You can see by him carrying it. And now that we found out he's a firearms instructor, it's like his right. I think there's a chance this guy is very, very emboldened by all this and maybe really wanting, you know, to strike again to get more victims. We saw some reporting that he might be a, have been a militia man or associated with right wing militias.
And that may come out on the note that was found in the house. They may come out, you know, some, some talk about how he hates the government or, you know, how he hates state troopers or what, you know, whatever fantasy he's got. But that's always helpful though, because if you get embarrassed somewhere, the negotiators need all that information to try to talk to him. And even a mass killer can be negotiated with everybody in the world to be negotiated with.
You never say that you can't, so you always can try. And so you need that information. It's just, just the agony of the people in Maine comes right through on the way this interviews, Kristen. I mean, you can see it, you can see it in the press conference of the commanders.
You can feel it. I mean, the pressure in that room. You can feel it. They are under the pressure to find this guy so he doesn't strike again.
Because if he does come out of a hole, we know how deadly he is. And you know, before anybody can even respond to the shooting, he's already wreaked mass havoc. So we need a test. We need this fighting.
We need some report to get him, to get him corralled. Well, Jim Cavanaugh, I think he used the right word. Agony. Lewiston is in agony.
The state of Maine is in agony. And frankly, the country is in agony today with yet another mass shooting that has claimed far too many lives. Thank you so much for your critical insights, Jim. We really appreciate it.
I am joined now by Cedric Alexander, M.E. senior Senior law enforcement analyst and former public safety director of Cal County, Georgia. Thank you so much for joining me, Cedric. I really appreciate it.
Would you take us inside this manhunt? You just heard Jim describe the urgency, the agony, the necessity of finding this person, whether he is alive or dead, so that this community can at least get back to going outside and not being in a state of lockdown. Well, you know, one of the challenges in this particular case, we're going into the 24th hour since this horrific tragedy took place. And as time picks on and we don't have a whole lot of information that's being reported publicly, it will certainly over time the community will continue to be sad.
They're going to become more angry, more frustrated the longer people feel that they have to stay locked down at home and do some of the things that is not typical in their lifestyle even under these conditions. I think what is going to be incredibly important here going forward and certainly being sensitive to law enforcement and what they have to contend with, with this threat and also, as far as we know, not knowing where he is. But I think it becomes important that the sharing of information maybe every few hours might be helpful. I know there's understand there's another presser coming up here maybe within the hour.
Those pressures are hugely important when people in that community and across the country are able to hear some type of updates, even if it's not anything of any real significance. A lot of emotions and feelings are certainly involved. Also, we have to remember this real quickly is that the people who have been killed and injured in that community, yes, that is hugely impactful to the Lewiston, Maine community. But also those that are deceased, those that have been injured, and those that live in that community under stress right now also have extended family and friends across this country that this is impacting and is impacting the nation at large.
So as soon as this subject is brought into custody, the better. But I am confident they are going to find him either dead or alive. But I'm confident they're going to find him. And we'll see as we get ready to roll into the second night of this.
I hope you are right and I hope that happens soon. Cedric, reflect, if you will, on the fact that there are two things happening at once. There is this search, but also an investigation to try to figure out what prompted this, who this, this person is, why this person would have taken so many lives. Is there any concern about this urgent manhunt impacting or hindering the investigation?
Well, there certainly is an urgency to bring the subject into custody, but also have to be mindful of the fact we don't know what information local, state and federal law enforcement maybe that they just cannot reveal to public because it would impede this investigation. So we need to be respectful and pay patient to that. However, does it impact the community? Yes.
Does it impact officers? Yes. Is it impacting this country? Because people across the country are watching this on the edge of their seats, knowing that there is a killer that is wanting them possibly in and around Maine or some part of that that country.
I could may have escaped any part of the country at this point. But I think as we go into the evening, and certainly I'm looking forward to this presser here within the hour that may shed some new light as to what is going on and maybe also even share with the community identities of those that have so tragically lost their lives. Yeah, we have to remember to keep the focus on those who have lost their lives. You're absolutely right about that, Cedric.
We're learning that the press conference was just pushed back by half an hour until 6pm Eastern again. We will, of course, bring that to our viewers. I want to talk to you, Cedric, about the residents who are in lockdown right now. What are they going through and what are local law enforcement officials challenged with in terms of making sure that people actually heed these warnings?
Well, you know, I'm going to take a look and change hats here for a moment, being a former clinical psychologist. And just think about this from the psychological impact, the emotional impact that community must be experiencing at this point. And when you have that type of number of people killed in a community in two different locations, you have that number of people injured in that location of 35 square miles, a community that's only about 37,000 people. You can imagine that many of those people probably have one or two degrees of separation from each other, are related to each other either as friends or family members that know others, etc.
That immunity can't help but be traumatized at this point, living in fear, living in sad, living in anger until the subject is brought into custody. And then you look at your first responders who had to respond to those tragic scenes, police officers, firefighters, medical personnel, civilian personnel who are going to do the forensics work. Imagine them being there witnessing that amount of carnage at one time that goes way beyond the realm of normalcy in our daily lives. And that will impact people, even though people will deal with it differently.
But it is a huge impact upon that community in a way that I truly hope that there are medical professionals, professionals who are headed into that community to provide support to police, to medical personnel and people who live in that community, and certainly those who may be family members or close friends of those who were killed or injured. Hugely important. We're not talking about that here, but it's something we have to keep at the forefront of that because that community has to be very, very hugely traumatized right now. And there's going to be a continued wide range of emotions until this subject is brought into custody.
Even beyond that, Cedric Alexander, I think you're absolutely right about that. And that is why there is this ongoing urgent effort, the entire country hoping that he is brought into custody in short order. Thank you so much. I'm joined now by the former mayor of Lewiston, now state representative for the Lewiston area, Kristen Kludier.
Thank you so much. State Representative, my condolences to you for the lives lost in your community and to all of those impacted. Thanks, Kristen. Thanks for having me.
Well, thank you for joining us. Can you just start, Representative, by telling us what you're hearing from your constituents in the Lewiston community in the wake of this horrific shooting. How are they holding up? You know, I.
I think, well, considering the circumstances, you know, I think everyone is sort of caught between feeling a little bit numb and then sort of feeling a rush of emotion all at the same time. And I think we're really just trying to make sense of something that actually doesn't make sense. It does not make sense at all. In terms of the response from the state and local officials, what has your reaction been?
Do you feel as though they are keeping the community updated on this urgent search that is underway? And are people heeding the warnings to stay inside? You know, it is eerily quiet on the streets of Lewiston today. So, yes, I do believe folks are heating those warnings.
I think local and state elected officials have really come together to provide support to our constituents and to do the best we can to listen to how they're feeling, to validate those feelings and to make sure they're responding in the most appropriate way. I think it's difficult for our law enforcement professionals because they're caught between really wanting to share all the information that they have and navigating an ongoing search for a person of interest. So I think we're all doing the best that we can under the circumstances and are really trying to navigate this as a community. I was listening to the governor earlier today.
She was understandably emotional as she spoke, and she talked about the fact that the shooting has hit the heart of Lewiston. And she said, but we will heal. Talk about the community of Lewiston, the people of Maine, the strength with which you are all approaching what the governor described as an incredibly dark period. Yeah, so I grew up in Lewiston.
I was raised here and raising my daughter here. Lewiston is what I like to call a gritty city. So it's a lot of blue collar workers. It's certainly a college in town, but it's certainly not college town.
The thing about Lewiston that is so endearing to me and the reason why I choose to live here is that we really do come together as a community in times of crisis, and we support each other and we care about our neighbors and we take care of each other. And that is the best kind of community to be when crisis strikes. And we are also a community that builds each other up and that figures out ways to get through crisis together. And we will certainly do that.
But I do think it's really important for us to take the time to grieve and to mourn and to be together and to sort of feel everything that we need to feel as members of this community facing such tragedy. Well, it is still the early hours of this investigation, but by all accounts, and based on our reporting, this is someone who had a background in the military, but also had a background in terms of having mental health challenges. What do you make of what we know so far about the suspect and the fact that a note was found? You know, because it's an ongoing investigation, I'm trying really not to speculate about the person of interest or the circumstances by which this happened.
There's been so much information from various news sources and from social media that it's really hard to differentiate, as somebody in the middle of it, what is factual and what is not. And so I'm really trying hard to rely on what information is being given to us in the press conferences that are being held from our local law enforcement, from state law enforcement. And so I'm not sure that I can actually speculate on the person of interest or what their motivations may or may not have been. It's certainly, you know, difficult to comprehend that it was somebody who had such extensive training in using that kind of a weapon.
So there's just a lot to grapple with there. I think there certainly is. State Representative Kristen Clear our thoughts, our prayers are with you and with your entire community right now. We really appreciate you coming on and giving us your perspective.
Thanks so much. I appreciate it. Coming up next, we will have the very latest in the Israel Hamas war as Israeli forces raid northern Gaza with tanks and prepare for a wider invasion. We are live in Israel with the very latest next.
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Listen daily on Amazon Music. Welcome back. We turn now to the ongoing Israel Hamas war. The Israeli military announcing today it conducted a targeted raid with tanks inside northern Gaza as part of their preparations for the next stage of combat.
And there will likely be more limited raids in the future. Today's raid marks the second time Israel conducted a limited raid in Gaza. About two weeks ago, Israel said conducted localized raids to gather evidence to assist their efforts to locate hostages. A ground invasion into Gaza has been widely expected now for days.
And yesterday, during an address to the nation, Prime Minister Netanyahu confirmed Israel is still planning to launch a ground offensive, but would not indicate dictate when it would begin. Meanwhile, inside Gaza, aid groups continue to sound the alarm about dwindling resources, the UN Saying today if fuel does not arrive imminently, it will need to wind down their humanitarian operations in Gaza. Joining Me now is Halibrani in Tel Aviv, Israel. And former NBC News Tel Aviv bureau chief Martin Fletcher joins me on set.
Hello. I want to start with you. Can you tell us what more you know about this targeted raid by the idf? What was the goal?
What is the impact been so far? So it was a shallow incursion, but it was the biggest one yet since October 7th. We understand that this was an operation that was designed, this is according to the Israeli military, to be a part of the preparations for the next stage. Now, for the last several weeks, of course, we've all been waiting for that promised ground offensive.
We understand that this was targeting anti tank missile launch sites. And you're seeing there a handout by the Israeli military showing this overnight incursion. This all laying the groundwork. The Israeli military is telling us for that next stage of the military offensive.
The IDF has been relentlessly bombing from the air as we've been reporting for the now last three weeks, telling, telling us, telling journalists and announcing publicly that this is to target Hamas sites to weaken its fighting position inside of Gaza in anticipation of that grand incursion. So this is what we know so far about this limited, pretty shallow, about half a mile. We understand incursion into the Gaza Strip and how obviously the other focus has been on the humanitarian crisis inside of Gaza. We know that some aid has gotten in.
It has been described to me a drop in what is needed. What is the very latest there and how much concern is there that a potential ground invasion could impact or worsen the humanitarian crisis? Well, I'm looking down. We want to get the numbers exactly right for you.
12 trucks crossed into Gaza today. That brings the total number of vehicles that have crossed into the Gaza Strip to 74 since October 7th. And those shipments do not include fuel, which humanitarian agencies are saying is as urgent now as food or water. Because the UN Relief agency on the ground is saying that it needs fuel to power its vehicles, to distribute flour to bakeries and medicine to its medical centers.
74 trucks, by the way. So our viewers understand in three weeks is fewer trucks than any typical ordinary day before the war person. So this is really a drop in the ocean. And the UN relief agency is saying that it's having already to ration its vehicles and to, you know, address some issues and ignore others because it just does not have the means to, to get to all the people who need its help.
Such an incredibly dire situation. Thank you for your incredible reporting. Please do continue to stay safe. We really appreciate it.
Martin, let me turn to You. I do want to start with the fact that two of your family members have been held hostage. They've now been released. They were the first two hostages to be released.
How are they doing? I know your family's focus is on getting more hostages out. To be honest with you, we don't know how they're doing. They haven't spoken to the wider family.
They're in still in Israel. They didn't fly back to the United States yet, which is what maybe one would have expected. So they're with relatives in a house somewhere in Israel, and presumably, I mean, they must be traumatized and trying to deal with what happened to them. So we don't know how they are.
Yeah, well, our thoughts and prayers are with them and the other hostages. We just heard from Hala about the activity in the West Bank. There's obviously a lot of focus on this, what we think is an imminent ground invasion. We know the Biden administration has been privately urging the Israelis to slow down that ground invasion so they can try to get more hostages out.
What is your sense right now of the situation on the ground? Well, as I said, it was a very small area, and they did that on the western side going down the bridge. They didn't go far at all. So, I don't know, gathering.
I'm not sure how much intelligence you could really gather. I think it was more probably of an expression of what we're going to do, a warning, if you like. I don't know what the facts of this, but they didn't do much because they didn't stay long. They didn't go far.
So will there be a ground invasion? Will there be and when will it happen? It may never happen. It's quite possible, as in the past when they've threatened ground invasions, that they've gone in a little bit here, a little bit there, they've stayed a day or two and come back.
So if they can achieve any tactical aims with short thrust, that's what they'll do. If they can't, then they'll go in. Fascinating notes. And we're watching very closely in terms of some of the activity that we have been seeing in the West Bank.
President Biden was asked about this yesterday. I want to play a little bit and get your reaction on the other side. I continue to be alarmed about extremist settlers attacking Palestinians in the west bank, that pouring gasoline on fire is what it's like. This was a deal.
The deal was made, and they're attacking Palestinians in places that they're entitled to be, it has to stop. They have to be held accountable. It has to stop. Now, what do you make of that in the term extremist settlers?
What has the reaction been to the president's words? Well, I asked a Palestinian, I called a Palestinian friend of mine, I said, what's happening in the West Bank? And she said, it's already happening. There's been a lot of skirmishes, a lot of fighting in small places in different towns.
Jenin Bukharam I think about 100 Palestinians have been killed already in the fighting. Look, this is an explosion waiting to happen in the same way as the, with Hezbollah in the north. It's a war waiting to happen. Everybody hopes it won't happen.
But that combustible mixture of Jewish settlers with guns in the west bank, angry, raging Palestinians. But seeing what's happening in Gaza, this is, you know, it can get a lot worse very quickly. Of course, that's what the president is trying to, trying to stop. And speaking of getting worse very quickly, Halak also, as we just discussed, commented on the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Do you have any expectation that they're going to be able to get more aid to help those residents who are trapped inside Gaza or to potentially get some of those living there out? Well, right now, however many deliveries of aid there are, it's just at that time, it's a drop in the ocean. The real question right now seems to be fuel. And you know, there's probably quite a lot of fuel in Gaza, but guess what?
Hamas has got their fuel. The Israeli army released photographs showing fuel tanks saying there's half a million liters in those fuel tanks. Ask Hamas for it. And so Hamas definitely has been preparing for the war, collecting medicines for their fighters, fuel.
So it is obviously not enough to help all the people, but there is some there. So isn't it? And the only thing about where will the people go? The other question becomes, you know, when they left the south, he went south.
And we all reporting where will they go? Well, Egypt potentially could simply open the gate and they could get out. So this is a lot of, a lot of, it's a complex situation. It is indeed.
Martin Fletcher, and you always help to bring a deepening understanding of what's a complicated situation. Thank you so much. It's so good to see you in person. Thank you.
Really appreciate it. Coming up next, even after being released, two of the hostages free from Hamas last week, as we just said, are still living in nightmares. More of their family members are still being held by Hamas. Another family member of those hostages joins me next.
But before we go to break, we have a special programming announcement. Tune in tomorrow for a special event edition of Hallie Jackson. Now breaking down everything you need to know about the Israel Hamas war that airs tomorrow night, 11pm Eastern right here on NBC News now. We'll be right back with more.
Stay with us. Welcome back. We want to stay on the very latest on the Israel Hamas war. The IDF has now increased the number of hostages at least Hamas is holding inside Gaza to 224.
To date, four hostages have been released today. In an interview with our affiliate Sky News, Cutter senior negotiator said despite the difficulties, they have managed to create, quote, breakthroughs and they are hopeful that more hostages may be released in the coming days. With me now is I let seller cousin of Judith Ratnan, who along with her daughter Natalie were among the four hostages released by Hamas mosque. But the family believes eight additional family members remain hostages.
Thank you so much for joining me. My thoughts, my prayers go out to you and your family at this difficult time. Thank you for joining me. Thank you, Kristen.
Unfortunately, I have to update you that it's seven family members that are missing. We're going tomorrow morning to the funeral of Kidney who was confirmed murdered a couple of days ago. So I still have. Thank you.
Among them three children, the youngest 3 years old, another 8 year old and 12 year old. We have no idea. We haven't heard any sign of life. We don't know about their condition and we're really, really desperate to know that they're okay and that everyone in power is doing whatever they can to bring them back.
I am so sorry that you are learning about a loss in your family. What can you tell us about your loved one who is now confirmed to have been killed by Hamas? She wrote a book to help children cope with, with living in a war zone with alarms and, and bombings all the time. We have already learned before that her husband died.
We were just finishing the Shiva, you know, the morning period for him. So they left their children orphaned. We don't know any details about the whereabouts or, or how. And, and I have to say that I'm not sure I want to know.
I am so sorry. I'm so sorry to hear that update. I want to ask you about your two relatives, Judith and Natalie, who've been released. I just spoke to my colleague, Martin Fletcher.
He said that they haven't spoken to their wider family. Have you spoken to them? I have spoken with them. It's there, it's theirs to share or not share.
I can tell you that it was such a relief to meet them and to hug them and to have them home with us. Unfortunately, we do not have the privilege to be joyful because now the focus is on bringing the rest of them back. Our seven family members, as well as over 220 other hostages being held in Gaza, children, women, elderly and men. Judith and Ali have also learned about our other family members missing only upon the return.
They are really worried and they expressed their desire to do whatever they can to help release the other hostages. I want to ask you, yesterday, Prime Minister Netanyahu said that the war cabinet is still preparing to launch a ground invasion. I wonder if you can share how you feel about that. Are you concerned that that may make it more difficult to see your seven remaining family members who are being held released, or do you think that that is the right course?
I think I'm a very small expert as to military goals. I would want to see them back before any other action is taken. It should be the only thing on the table at the moment prior to any other decisions or tacticals, hostages first, everything else after, if at all. Well, I believe it was that incredibly powerful answer.
And again, please know that our thoughts are with you and your entire family right now. Ayelet Salah, thank you so much for your time. Thank you so much. Coming up after the break, President Biden reacts to last night's shooting in Maine and then a frantic day of headlines for the administration.
We are live at the White House with the very latest. You're watching THE PRESS now. Welcome back. Turning out to the White House, flags have been lowered to have staff in honor of the victims of the devastating mass shooting in Maine.
In the wake of this tragedy, the president is urging Congress to pass a bill that would ban assault weapons. Now, as we know, the tragedy in Louisville marks 565th mass shooting in America this year alone. Alongside these grim numbers, however, some more hopeful news for the White House, including a better than expected economic report and a breakthrough in talks between striking auto workers and Ford, resulting in a tentative agreement. And for the very latest on all that is happening right now, NBC News White House correspondent Ali Rafa joins us.
Ali, let's start with this horrific shooting in Maine. What have we heard from the administration? Obviously, the vice president spoke out about it earlier today. That's right, Kristen.
No public events for the president. We did see and hear from Vice President Kamala Harris. We know from the White House that both of them have continued to be briefed and updated on the latest developments on the ground in Maine throughout the day after they both were informed about this mass shooting last night during the state dinner with the Australian foreign minister, Prime Minister Rather and in a statement this morning, the president pledged his full support for the Lewis community as long as they needed the full support of the federal government. He said he has spoken with Maine's leadership, with Maine's governor, two senators, with a congressman that represents this district.
And as you mentioned, Kristen, he, as we hear him do in so many of the aftermaths of these mass shootings, he called for more to be done. He said even after the bipartisan Safer Communities act that passed in June of 2022, even after the executive actions he's taken to essentially make sure that all the provisions in that piece of legislation are working at full capacity, and even after the creation of the first ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, he says there's still so much needed to be done. And in a statement he issued this morning, he called on Republicans to work with him to be able to pass those, those red flag laws, more background checks, that assault weapons ban, a ban of those large capacity magazines. Despite poll after poll showing, Kristen, that the majority of Americans are in favor of stricter gun control laws.
The reality check on the ground is with the current makeup of Congress, it is very, very unlikely that we could see this before potentially the 2024 election. So the president knows that as of right now, really all he can do is continue to keep this front and center in the American public's mind and hope that it is a motivating factor in 2024. Despite that, we did see Press Secretary Jean Pierre challenge Republicans during today's press briefing. She said that she challenged newly elected speaker of the House Mike Johnson to work to find common ground on work on legislation.
And we know that the newly elected speaker, his first full day of work as speaker of the House, he was here at the White House today. He met with President Biden. He and Hakeem Jeffries were both here. And after they met with the president, they also had a classified briefing with LE leaders on the Foreign Affairs, Appropriations and Intelligence committees on that 105 billion dollar supplemental funding request.
Of course, we know that was supposed to go to Ukraine, to Israel, to Taiwan's defenses as well as the US Mexico border. The White House hoping to get a kickstart on that piece of legislation for soon. All right, Ali Rafa covering all of the angles first from the White House. Ali, thank you so much.
Really appreciate it. And thank you for being with us. This hour. I'm back tomorrow with more Be the Press Now.
NBC News now coverage continues with Tom Costello in for Alan Jackson right now. Hey, everyone. I'm Dylan Dryer, co host of the third hour of Today and mom to three wild boys. I learned a lot my years as a parent, mostly that I don't have all figured out yet.
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