CNN’s Jake Tapper interviewed a Palestinian-American woman who is trapped in Gaza as Israel conducts its military campaign to destroy Hamas, assuring her that the Biden White House is a regular viewer of his show.
On Tuesday’s edition of “The Lead,” the leftist anchor talked with Haneen Okal, a Union County, NJ mom who was caught in the wrong place at the wrong time when the Jewish nation retaliated after a sneak attack in which the terrorists massacred more than 1,000 Israelis over the weekend with a primitive barbarism that shocked the civilized world.
Okal, who along with her three children are in an area that is now under attack – explosions are heard in the background – could be in luck as Tapper let it slip that he has clout with the Biden administration and could use it to aid her rescue.
(Video: CNN)
“Has the U.S. Embassy been able to give you any help to get out,” Tapper asked after informing viewers of the age of her children who are eight, two, and two months old.
Okal answered that despite multiple attempts to get assistance from the embassy, she has had no luck. “I don’t know if we’re gonna make it but I am absolutely looking forward to the help of the U.S. Embassy. We are all here feeling abandoned… we’re feeling that we’re left alone so we’re really looking for the U.S. Embassy to help the U.S. citizens who are living in Gaza.”
Tapper asked whether the “loud sound” that was heard as she was speaking was an Israeli airstrike.
“Yes. That’s happening 24 hours. All time, they’re bombing all around…,” she answered, telling the anchor that her kids are scared of the bombs and missiles.
“There needs to be a way for you to get out. I mean, you’re not Hamas, you’re an innocent person and you have three kids,” he said. “You need to be able to get out. You heard earlier the suggestions from the IDF spokesman I spoke with on Saturday night. Where are innocent Palestinians supposed to go? He said you can go to the south, you can go to the shore. Is that at all realistic?”
“No, we tried everywhere,” Okal responded. “They say go to the shore, and then they bomb the shore next day. They say go to the north, and then they bomb the north areas next day. Like, everywhere. They’re bombing everywhere. So, no place is safe here in Gaza Strip, and it’s just terrible and very, very, you know, very hard to explain because they’re bombing everywhere.
“It’s not just a place or like a place that is close to Hamas,” Okal said. “They’re bombing places that are not related to Hamas. ”
“Haneen Okal, we have your number. I know that the White House watches this show. The White House can call me and we will put them in touch with you. You and your kids need to get out safe, and you need to get out safe as soon as is humanly possible. Please stay safe and stay in touch with us. We’re going to do everything we can to help you,” the anchor said.
“And we will make sure that the White House gets that information whether they’re watching or not,” Tapper added.
With Tapper divulging his White House connection, it raises questions as to how the cozy relationship could potentially affect the networks’s coverage of other matters, especially considering the anchor’s own personal animus to GOP frontrunner Donald J. Trump, President Joe Biden’s likely opponent in next year’s election.
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