CBS News
Gaza struggles under Israel’s bombardment with few functional hospitals
Dr. Nahreen Ahmed, a Philadelphia-based doctor and medical director for MedGlobal, a U.S. based nongovernmental organization that sends volunteer doctors and nurses into disaster areas and war zones, has been to Syria, Yemen and Ukraine. But the American doctor said that what she saw in Gaza before she left in January was incomparable.
What most impacted Ahmed, who spent 16 days on the front lines in Gaza inside Nasser Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the territory, was seeing so many young victims.
“I don’t think I’ve seen this many children affected in any of the other war zones I’ve ever been to,” Ahmed said. “I don’t think I’ve seen this many people squeezed in a small area without any ability to leave. I don’t think I’ve been this close to the sound of missile strikes — with the house shaking, where the hospital is shaking while I’m trying to operate in the ICU.”
Ahmed said she saw children with shrapnel injuries. She said some of the deaths she saw could have been prevented if doctors had the medicine and supplies they needed.
60 Minutes
“There are people getting limbs amputated without any anesthesia. That’s what we’re seeing on a day-to-day basis,” she said. “I can tell you that things that we have put into the pipeline to get to Gaza can often take weeks to months.”
Doctors dealt with waves of casualties every day in the weeks before Israeli forces raided Nasser hospital. Israel said it had intelligence Hamas held hostages at the hospital.
The hospitals left in Gaza
Nasser is not the only hospital that has been under siege in Gaza. Israeli troops had previously stormed Al Shifa and Al Amal hospitals, claiming that Hamas was hiding inside.
As of this past week, there are only 12 partially functioning hospitals in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
During the raid on Nasser, patients, staff, and thousands sheltering in the hospital spilled onto the street.
On Feb. 18 and 19, with explosions still going on outside the hospital, teams from the World Health Organization made their way into Nasser, negotiating through the dark to evacuate 32 critical patients, some of them children. They say there are more patients and staff inside. There’s no electricity or running water.
More than 29,000 people in Gaza have been killed by Israel’s relentless offensive, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Hamas, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths, says most of those killed have been women and children. The United Nations reports more than 300 health care workers have been killed since the war began.
Aid delays worsen the crisis in Gaza
When Hamas stormed Israel on Oct. 7, sparking the deadly war, they destroyed the terminal at Erez, a border crossing used in the past for people to travel between Israel and Gaza. The damaged terminal has been closed since then. Kerem Shalom is currently the only border crossing from Israel into Gaza and is used solely for humanitarian aid. The Israel Defense Forces would not allow “60 Minutes” to film there.
Before the war, more than 500 trucks carrying tons of goods came through the crossing every day. Today, on average, about 85 trucks of aid come through each day.
60 Minutes
It’s nowhere close to what Gaza needs, Scott Anderson, an Army veteran from Iowa who works for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, said.
“In an ideal world, there’d be 600 trucks a day coming into Gaza,” Anderson said.
There is no food for sale in Gaza and 70% of the people there don’t have access to clean water, according to the U.N. Nearly two million Gazans are dependent on aid for all their food and water.
“What you mostly see from people every day is they’re trying to find food, trying to stay warm and trying to find somewhere to use the bathroom,” Anderson said. “I mean, that’s what people’s lives consist of. It’s very much a pressure cooker environment because there’s so many people.”
The Israeli government has said the problems getting aid distributed in Gaza are the fault of the United Nations.
Anderson said there’s more to the hold up.
“It’s not just the U.N.,” Anderson said. “Every day there’s a couple hours where nothing moves, OK? And that’s not us. There’s just nothing to get.”
For 70 years, UNRWA has been the largest aid organization in Gaza, providing food, education and medical care. Critics, including some Israelis, say the agency is corrupt. On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wants to completely shut down UNRWA.
Last month, Israel accused 12 of UNRWA’s 13,000 employees of participating in the Hamas Oct. 7 attack. The U.N. fired the employees, but 16 countries, including the U.S., have stopped funding the organization while investigations are ongoing.
Anderson was shocked by the allegations against 12 UNRWA employees, he said.
“Unfortunately throughout history, many individuals have betrayed organizations that they work for, betrayed the values,” he said. “We do uphold U.N. values, humanitarian principles and we are responding to the best of our ability in Gaza right now.”
He emphasized that UNRWA is essential in Gaza.
“There’s nobody that can do the work we do,” Anderson said. “UNRWA is the backbone of the operation, and without us the operation will collapse.”
Difficulties getting to help within Gaza
Getting emergency medical help to those in need in Gaza is a challenge on its own, said Nebal Farsakh. She is the spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent, which is part of the international Red Cross. At an emergency call center in Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, operators dispatch emergency workers in Gaza — 50 miles away.
Cuts to electricity and communication blackouts that last several days have made the already difficult job even worse.
60 Minutes
One operator recently got a call from a family evacuating northern Gaza. Audio captures 15-year-old Layan Hamada describing the chaos around her. Gunfire and screams can be heard; then the line goes dead.
When the operator called back, the teen’s cousin, 6-year-old Hind Rajab, picked up.
“The tank is next to me,” she said in Arabic. “I’m so scared. Please come.”
The Red Crescent sent an ambulance to rescue her. The destroyed ambulance was discovered in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood of Gaza City 12 days later, with two medics dead inside. Hind Rajab was found dead in a car alongside five members of her family.
The IDF said that the “incident is still under review,” but has accused Hamas in the past of using ambulances to transport fighters.
“The story of Hind is not the only story. It’s absolutely dozens of calls we’re getting since the beginning of the war in Gaza, where we feel helpless,” Farsakh said “Because we are completely denied access to many areas in Gaza to only provide our emergency medical services.”
Buildings across Gaza have been flattened, displacing nearly 2 million people from their homes. Some have crammed into makeshift shelters, where hundreds of people are forced to share a single bathroom.
Many have settled in a sprawling tent city in Rafah, on the border with Egypt. Around 280,000 people lived in Rafah before the war. The United Nations said Rafah is now home to around 1.4 million people who have fled fighting.
A member of Israel’s War Cabinet recently said if the more than130 hostages still remaining in Gaza are not home in two weeks, Israel will launch a ground offensive in Rafah. Last week, the U.S. warned Israel to refrain, saying it could worsen an “already catastrophic situation.”
For Ahmed, the doctor who worked at Nasser hospital for 16 days, it’s hard to imagine people could endure even more hardship.
“Every day, they hear the sounds of missiles, the drones, these noises that have now become somewhat normal for them, and yet are a sign that death may be around the corner,” Ahmed said. “I will never be the same. And they have experienced this for over 100 days, and they may never be able to get out.”
CBS News
A week before Texas mom Alyssa Burkett’s murder, the killer received a text: “I hope you handle it”
After Alyssa Burkett was murdered, detectives quickly learned that the prime suspect was the father of her child, Andrew Beard. But as the investigation unfolded, they would find out that Beard wasn’t the only one involved in the murder plot.
Take a look inside the investigation.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 a.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Shortly after 24-year-old Alyssa Burkett pulled into her parking space at work in Carrollton, Texas, a man with a gun shot her in the head through her car window and fled.
Carrollton Police Department
Burkett survived the gun blast, got out of her car and tried to get help. Her bloody hand left a print on the office window.
The assailant saw Burkett running and chased after her. He stabbed and slashed Alyssa 44 times and left the scene in his black SUV.
Lizatte Bowers/Alyssa Burkett, Facebook
When Burkett’s mother, Teresa Collard, arrived at the scene, she immediately gave detectives a name: Andrew Beard. Beard was the father of Burkett’s 1-year-old child, Willow.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 12 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Hours after the murder, police officers stopped Beard in his white Ford F-150 pickup truck. His fiancée, Holly Elkins, and baby Willow were with him. Beard was told he could leave the scene, but he couldn’t return home. Officers also seized his pickup truck.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Later that night, police searched Beard’s home and found a GPS tracker battery and charging stations that matched a tracking device detectives discovered under Burkett’s car earlier that day.
Carrollton Police Department
Investigators also uncovered what they believed to be an unregistered gun silencer.
Oct. 3, 2020 | 12 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
The next day, detectives searched Beard’s white F-150 pickup truck and found a backpack. Inside, they uncovered two bottles of dark brown makeup, and a pair of men’s hiking boots that had been cut into pieces and were soaking in bleach.
Oct. 3, 2020
Carrollton Police Department
Later that night, police located that black Ford SUV the assailant drove to the scene. It was found abandoned less than a mile from Beard’s house.
Carrolton Police Department
When detectives searched the SUV, they found a fake beard smeared with dark brown makeup.
Oct. 5, 2020
Carrolton Police Department
When Beard learned there was a warrant for his arrest, he turned himself in to the Carrollton Police Department. He was charged with murder.
Oct. 6, 2020
Beard’s fiancée, Holly Elkins, voluntarily went to speak with detectives at the Carrollton Police Department.
Carrolton Police Department
During the interview, Elkins told investigators that Beard was at home with her on the morning of the murder. She also described herself as a “stage 5 clinger girlfriend,” and said she would have known if Beard left the house that morning.
Oct. 6, 2020 | 1:30 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
After her interview, investigators said Elkins made the following internet searches:
“Can I not be brought to court if I have a psychiatrist note?”
“vulnerable patients going to court”
“contact psychiatrist in Dallas”
“Can I not be subpoenaed to jail if I have a mental issue?”
Oct. 29, 2020
Beard spent two weeks behind bars before he was released on bond. Carrollton Police Det. Jeremy Chevallier said he was worried about baby Willow’s safety, so he reached out to the federal government to take the case under federal firearm laws.
Because detectives found an unregistered silencer during the search of Beard’s home, the federal government agreed to take the case.
Carrollton Police Department
Eight days after he bonded out, Beard was rearrested and ultimately charged with cyberstalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.
July 15, 2022
In June 2022, Beard pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.
FBI
One month later, he spoke to the FBI as part of a plea deal. And he had a lot to say about Elkins’ involvement in Burkett’s murder.
“…It was…’this is how you’re gonna do this,’ it was, ‘… you’re gonna wear this dark makeup …’ That was her plan…that’s how it’s gonna be done,” Beard told the FBI.
May 24, 2023
Beard was sentenced to 43 years in federal prison.
June 21, 2023
After speaking with Beard, the FBI spent about a year building a case against Elkins.
Investigators found internet searches and a Walgreens receipt that connected her to the crime.
Carrollton Police Department
They also dug into text messages between Elkins and Beard. In a text sent to Beard one week before Burkett’s murder, Elkins wrote, “I hope you handle it I’m not coming home to b**s***”
Elkins was indicted on three charges: conspiracy to stalk, stalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in serious bodily injury and death and brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.
July 6, 2023
Johnson County Sheriff’s Office
Elkins was arrested at the Miami airport by federal agents after returning from a trip to the Dominican Republic.
April 9 – 16, 2024
Lizette Bowers
Elkins’ trial began at the federal courthouse in downtown Dallas. After six days, the case went to the jury.
April 17, 2024
Stephen Green
The jury deliberated for about an hour-and-a-half before they found Elkins guilty on all counts. On Aug. 15, 2024, Elkins was sentenced to two life terms.
CBS News
A week before Texas mom Alyssa Burkett’s murder, the killer received a text: “I hope you handle it”
After Alyssa Burkett was murdered, detectives quickly learned that the prime suspect was the father of her child, Andrew Beard. But as the investigation unfolded, they would find out that Beard wasn’t the only one involved in the murder plot.
Take a look inside the investigation.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 a.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Shortly after 24-year-old Alyssa Burkett pulled into her parking space at work in Carrollton, Texas, a man with a gun shot her in the head through her car window and fled.
Carrollton Police Department
Burkett survived the gun blast, got out of her car and tried to get help. Her bloody hand left a print on the office window.
The assailant saw Burkett running and chased after her. He stabbed and slashed Alyssa 44 times and left the scene in his black SUV.
Lizatte Bowers/Alyssa Burkett, Facebook
When Burkett’s mother, Teresa Collard, arrived at the scene, she immediately gave detectives a name: Andrew Beard. Beard was the father of Burkett’s 1-year-old child, Willow.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 12 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Hours after the murder, police officers stopped Beard in his white Ford F-150 pickup truck. His fiancée, Holly Elkins, and baby Willow were with him. Beard was told he could leave the scene, but he couldn’t return home. Officers also seized his pickup truck.
Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
Later that night, police searched Beard’s home and found a GPS tracker battery and charging stations that matched a tracking device detectives discovered under Burkett’s car earlier that day.
Carrollton Police Department
Investigators also uncovered what they believed to be an unregistered gun silencer.
Oct. 3, 2020 | 12 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
The next day, detectives searched Beard’s white F-150 pickup truck and found a backpack. Inside, they uncovered two bottles of dark brown makeup, and a pair of men’s hiking boots that had been cut into pieces and were soaking in bleach.
Oct. 3, 2020
Carrollton Police Department
Later that night, police located that black Ford SUV the assailant drove to the scene. It was found abandoned less than a mile from Beard’s house.
Carrolton Police Department
When detectives searched the SUV, they found a fake beard smeared with dark brown makeup.
Oct. 5, 2020
Carrolton Police Department
When Beard learned there was a warrant for his arrest, he turned himself in to the Carrollton Police Department. He was charged with murder.
Oct. 6, 2020
Beard’s fiancée, Holly Elkins, voluntarily went to speak with detectives at the Carrollton Police Department.
Carrolton Police Department
During the interview, Elkins told investigators that Beard was at home with her on the morning of the murder. She also described herself as a “stage 5 clinger girlfriend,” and said she would have known if Beard left the house that morning.
Oct. 6, 2020 | 1:30 p.m.
Carrollton Police Department
After her interview, investigators said Elkins made the following internet searches:
“Can I not be brought to court if I have a psychiatrist note?”
“vulnerable patients going to court”
“contact psychiatrist in Dallas”
“Can I not be subpoenaed to jail if I have a mental issue?”
Oct. 29, 2020
Beard spent two weeks behind bars before he was released on bond. Carrollton Police Det. Jeremy Chevallier said he was worried about baby Willow’s safety, so he reached out to the federal government to take the case under federal firearm laws.
Because detectives found an unregistered silencer during the search of Beard’s home, the federal government agreed to take the case.
Carrollton Police Department
Eight days after he bonded out, Beard was rearrested and ultimately charged with cyberstalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.
July 15, 2022
In June 2022, Beard pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.
FBI
One month later, he spoke to the FBI as part of a plea deal. And he had a lot to say about Elkins’ involvement in Burkett’s murder.
“…It was…’this is how you’re gonna do this,’ it was, ‘… you’re gonna wear this dark makeup …’ That was her plan…that’s how it’s gonna be done,” Beard told the FBI.
May 24, 2023
Beard was sentenced to 43 years in federal prison.
June 21, 2023
After speaking with Beard, the FBI spent about a year building a case against Elkins.
Investigators found internet searches and a Walgreens receipt that connected her to the crime.
Carrollton Police Department
They also dug into text messages between Elkins and Beard. In a text sent to Beard one week before Burkett’s murder, Elkins wrote, “I hope you handle it I’m not coming home to b**s***”
Elkins was indicted on three charges: conspiracy to stalk, stalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in serious bodily injury and death and brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.
July 6, 2023
Johnson County Sheriff’s Office
Elkins was arrested at the Miami airport by federal agents after returning from a trip to the Dominican Republic.
April 9 – 16, 2024
Lizette Bowers
Elkins’ trial began at the federal courthouse in downtown Dallas. After six days, the case went to the jury.
April 17, 2024
Stephen Green
The jury deliberated for about an hour-and-a-half before they found Elkins guilty on all counts. On Aug. 15, 2024, Elkins was sentenced to two life terms.
President-elect Trump on Friday named Karoline Leavitt, his campaign press secretary, to serve as his White House press secretary.
Leavitt, 27, currently a spokesperson for Trump’s transition, would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. Previously that distinction went to Ronald Ziegler, who was 29 when he took the position in 1969 in Richard Nixon’s administration.
“Karoline Leavitt did a phenomenal job as the National Press Secretary on my Historic Campaign, and I am pleased to announce she will serve as White House Press Secretary,” Trump said in a statement. “Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator. I have the utmost confidence she will excel at the podium, and help deliver our message to the American People as we Make America Great Again.”
Leavitt replied in a post on X, formerly Twitter: “Thank you, President Trump, for believing in me. I am humbled and honored. Let’s MAGA,” the acronym for “Make America Great Again.”
The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps.
MEGA
Trump disrupted those norms in his first term, preferring to serve as his own chief spokesperson. While he was president from 2017 to 2021, Trump had four press secretaries but frequently preferred to engage directly with the public, from his rallies, social media posts and his own briefings.
At a news conference this past August, Trump was asked if he’d have regular press briefings in his new administration. He told reporters, “I will give you total access and you’ll have a lot of press briefings and you’ll have, uh, from me.”
When it came to a press secretary, he said: “Probably they’ll do something. If it’s not daily, it’s going to be a lot. You’ll have more than you want.”
Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, is seen as a staunch and camera-ready advocate for Trump who is quick on her feet and delivers aggressive defenses of the Republican in television interviews.
She worked as a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to incumbent Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas.
During Trump’s first term in office, Leavitt worked in the White House press office. She then became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, whom Trump has tapped to serve as his U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Trump’s first press secretaries, Sean Spicer and Sarah Huckabee Sanders, were known for quarreling with reporters. Another, Stephanie Grisham, never held a briefing. Her successor, Kayleigh McEnany, often lectured the news media during her appearances in the White House press briefing room.
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In their final meeting, Xi tells Biden that China is ready to work with a new US administration