Transcripts For CNNW CNN 20240703

We are back now with Breaking News out of The Middle East. Two american hostages have been released by hamas. They are now in israel. The State Department is expected to give a briefing in minutes. Lets get to tel aviv with the news. Kaitlan collins helped break this story. What are you learning about the two americans and their release . Reporter yeah, amazing news for the families of judith and Natalie Ranaan who have desperately been waiting for word on their loved ones, and we have confirmed theyre the two american hostages who have been released and now in israel according to the prime Minsters Office here. Theyre on their way to a Military Base where theyre going to be meeting their family whos waiting for them tonight. Judith and natalie, many people are familiar with their story. Theyre from illinois and they were just in israel visiting. Natalie just graduated from high school. She was here with judith, their mother. They were celebrating a relatives 85th birthday. They were staying at a kibbutz an hour away from gaza as this attack unfold. They were kidnapped into gaza. Now we learned they are being released. A lot of people are going to be asking, why these two hostages . Why did hamas decide to release them . Carding to hamas they say this is on humanitarian grounds. Were told the mother judith is not in good healthle we dont have details about her condition still trying to report those out. But obviously this is incredibly significant news. Its going to be bittersweet for a lot of these families. Many we saw earlier today here in tel aviv where they were going a shahban dinner. Its a time for family and friends to get together, and a lot of these people who have had their relatives, their family, friends, loved once abducted, its the last time they saw some of them. We were at the ceremonies for the friends and families of those abducted where they set this table, over 200 empty chairs for those celebrating shabbat without their loved ones. That was something that happened hours before we heard the news, they have been released. The release was brokered by qatar as they have been asking discussions with hamas about getting the hostages released. There are still a lot of questions about what this is going to look like and who is going to potentially be coming next, whether or not hamas is planning to use this in other ways for their release, but it is significant news on that front, of course. Kaitlan, is there a sense that this is just a one off . Could it be the start of more negotiation . More releases possible . Thats the big question here, because of course hamas labeled a Terrorist Organization by the united states. Certainly not benevolent by in means. We know in the past hamas captured an Israeli Military officer, held him for years, and in the end he was released for over 1,000 palestinian prisoners. Thats something people were talking about when they realized the depth, how many hostages they captured, and whether or not theyd be willing to release any at all. That is the being question Going Forward, whether or not its going to mean the release of others. Hamas made a lot of claims about this. We cant really trust many of them, so i want to make sure we are waiting to see what it is that israeli officials are saying. Were waiting to hear from the white house on this actually. Theyre waiting, were told from sources, until the two hostage are safely out. As we continue to is a what the white house is going to say and for the state Department Briefing, i want to go to Nic Robertson whos in real and h monitoring a lot of activity there. What have you been seeing in the last few hours . I think its noticeable as right as the news was beginning to break about mother and daughter being released, thats when hamas kind of broke the silence or one of the groups in gaza broke the silence. It had been so calm until then, and they fired out a huge salvo of rockets. Intercepter missiles went up. Literally at this hour they did the same. I think we have the video. You can see it a huge salvo of rockets coming it it will iron dome intercepts as theyre headed north into israel. The intercepts were pulucking them out of the sky, if you will, knocking them down. I think if hamas is trying to send more than one message today about why its released these hos hostages, its also sending a message it clearly intending to continue its Military Campaign with rockets. I say it was noticeable earlier today it was quiet. There werent any israeli missiles going into gaza or artillery, and it created an impression cant say for sure there were talks or discussions, something going on in the backgrounding because this was until that moment a far quieter time. There are a lot of drones in the sky at the moment, and hamas has created a perception from where we stand that while israel didnt have drones in the air and wasnt putting artillery and missile strikes and gaza, they were using the opportunity, it appears, to line up salvo after salvo after salvo of rocket fire. Our location here had a salvo of rockets shortly after the announcement of the hostage release, a fivesequence salvo of rockets. Thats more, i think, than weve seen in even a couple days before, and that came all within the space of a little over an hour, so it does look as if hamas used that quieter period to position rocket firing. Yeah, thats really interesting, nick, because its also been quiet here in tel aviv this even, and typically on a daily basis we have had one or two rockets fired by hamas toward tel aviv. Weve seen the iron dome intercepting those. Well continue to check in with you humanitarian aid is a big part of this question we have been having today and when it is going to cross over. That crossing between egypt and gaza, the raffa crossing, the only way that aid can get across. Cnns Clarissa Ward is in cairo. There were rumors it was going happy early friday morning. That didnt happen. What are you hearing . What have you been seeing on the ground in cairo today . Reporter so, kaitlan, we actually went to the Border Crossing with the u. N. Secretary general, Antonio Guterres. I think originally he hoped he was going to be going there to announce a diplomatic win, that somehow some of that aid would start to get in. We saw hundreds of trucks that have been lined up for many days now. No sense at the moment, though, as to when they will be able to get into gaza where theyre so desperately needed. President biden said hes hoping this will happen in the next 24 to 48 hours, but kaitlan, there are a couple key sticking points here. The major issue is the issue of israels demand for veri verification. They want to make sure that they have a way of trusting that there is nothing in those trucks over than aid, no weaponry or anything like that. They have to set that up somehow. Where would it happen . Wou who would have eyes on it . How could it be done in an expedited manner . The second piece of the puzzle is the u. N. Is not happy with this being just 20 truck a day. To give you a perspective, before that outburst of violence started it was roughly 455 trucks of aid a day that would go into gaza, so 20 trucks of aid after two weeks of no aid is clearly just a drop in the ocean, and what the u. N. Said that theyre worried about, kaitlan, is if they just go in with 20 trucks and no promise of followup and no guarantee as continuous humanitarian corridor, theyre worried the trucks are going to get mobbed, the workers are going to get mobbed and it could become a dangerous situation. There had also been concern about the fact that there was damage on the palestinian side of the border, the gaza side, from or strikes. The egyptians said they largely paved over those areas and fixed them. But what was super interesting, kaitlan, was when we arrived at the border with the u. N. Secretary general, he had hoped to also talk to some of the volunteers and the truck drives who have been camped out there for days. Instead he walked in to a protest of i would say 200 or 300 people, very angry people. A lot of anger obviously at israel and the u. S. , but also a lot of anger at the International Community for being ham strung, for not being able to put a stop to the violence and a start to the aid, and also, kaitlan, a huge amount of anger at the western media. And one woman started shouting at me, so we went over to her and invited her to talk us to. Take a listen to what she had the say. We are here to speak the truth, because western a lot, im not going to generalize but a lot of western channels have been aiding in the dehumanizing of. When i say muhammad, you immediately flinch. Thats whats happening. Now when a thousand plus palestinian babies die, you dont feel the same. You dont feel the same as when i tell you one of your own has died. Because these are our own, and it is unfair, and egypt wont stand with palestine. Reporter and the secretary general, kaitlan, was trying to deliver his remarks as this protest was going on. It got chaotic and animated enough that he actually had to be whisked away in a car. We were also put back on the puss and escorted out. But gives you a feel of the anger, of the desperation. And meanwhile, the people in gaza suffering and waiting for that desperately needed aid, kaitlan. Yeah, and every minute we just continue to see that. Clarissa ward, great reporting. Well check back in with you in cairo. I want to toss it to Anderson Cooper also in tel aviv. Reporter thanks very much. Demonstrations in support of palestinians have drawn Tens Of Thousands of people across The Middle East as you have been seeing in north africa. Heres a look at protests in yemen, turkey, and jordan just to name a few. Cnns bashir is in aman, jordan, and talked to them about whats happening here. Reporter for yet another night, hundreds of people have gathered here at the Israeli Embassy to protest in solidarity with the Palestinian People but also to express their outrage and condemnation of israels continued air strikes on the gaza strip. But this isnt the only protest weve seen here today in aman. This follows an enormous march which took place earlier today. Thousands of people participating in that. Take a look. In downtown aman, worshippers gather for friday prayers, but its not just the call to prayer that has drawn these crowds today. But a Call To Action in solidarity, the Palestinian People. The protest is a pledge, they chant, that the people of jordan will not leave gaza alone. Thousands of men, women, and children, entire families draped in the traditional palestinian scarf, a symbol of many for palestinian resistance. Reporter you can hear how loud the crowds are here for yet another day in aman, thousands have taken to the streets, protest against israels continued bombardment of the gaza strip, protesting in solidarity with the Palestinian People. Translator we are dong this for our families who are dieing in gaza, because we are unable to do anything, so the least we can do is stand here in solidarity with them, to support them so they know that we are with them, with our hearts and everything. Reporter there is palpable outrage here in jordan over israels ongoing bombardment of the besieged gaza strip, and deep seated anger towards israel and israels western allies. Many here even calling on the jordanian government to close down the u. S. And israeli embassies in aman. For days now, protests have taken place not only across jordan but also across the wider region. In cairo, hundreds gathered in the square. We need justice. We need justice reporter hours earlier at the raffa Border Crossing, u. N. Secretary general Antonio Guterres was forced to cut his visit short after protests erupted there. Gaza has faced relentless israeli air strikes for almost two weeks now. And protests across the arab world and the wider region are at a boiling point. Iraq, tunisia, yemen, and turkey, and even further afield. And with gaza on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe this Protest Movement is only growing stronger. Look, we have been speaking to protesters every night. They have told us theyll continue taking to the streets so long as israels bombardment continue, so long as the siege on gaza is in place, so long as the blockade is in place. This is a duply personal issue for many people here in jordan, for many people across The Middle East. Standing by for an update from the State Department. Were expecting that at any moment on the two american hostages released by hamas. Were going to bring that to you when it happens. Well be right back. We have new details on our Breaking News from capitol hill. House republicans voted to oust jim jordan as their speaker designee and now theyre back to square one, and congress after 17 days remains closed for business. Theres a new Candidates Forum set for mononight. Lets go to manu raju for more reaction. Okay, theres this forum, so people are starting to throw their names out there. Tell us about it. Reporter yeah, there are at least six candidates right now. Its turning into an absolute free for all as republicans are in turmoil, trying to figure out how to move forward. They are absolutely broken, in the words of a number of republicans coming out of this very tense meeting that curd earlier today, and after just a series of days where they have been unable to figure out how to move the house out of its state of paralysis. Then started almost three weeks ago when the speaker of the house Kevin Mccarthy vote out in historic fashion, unprecedented fashion. As a result nothing can get done until they elect a new speaker and they havent been able to do that. The first candidate to replace them Steve Scalise collapsed because of opposition within the ranks. Jim jordan tried to two multiple rounds ands and we saw today losing 25 republicans. Ultimately going Behind Closed Doors and asking his conference if he should continue. His conference by a Majority Vote said he recollected not continue. As a result theyre trying to find a way forward. Talking to several republicans, including congresswoman dusty johnson, you could feel the tension, the anger that is dr directed at not just everything going on, but the eight republican who is initiated to vote to kick out Kevin Mccarthy. Clearly there is yet another void. We are going to have a couple more days of chaos as we try to get a sense of whats next. To me it reminds me how incredibly irresponsible it was for 2008 democrats and 8 republicans to put this house in absolute chaos without any plan for how we were going to move forward. Reporter he also took a shot at congresswoman nancy mace, one of the eight voting to oust Kevin Mccarthy. I asked mace to respond, she sent me a message saying her constituents would disagree. She called dusty baker does not represent South Carolina in any way, shape, or form. You can feel it, back and forth, pointing fingers, blaming members for how they got into this mess with no clear way out. Yes, there are candidates who are emerging and want to run for speaker buck can they get the votes to be elected speaker. . Can they move this house forward and unstick this Paralyzed Chamber . That is still unclear almost three weeks after Kevin Mccarthy was ousted. Guys. And a little overthree or four weeks to go until a potential government shutdown, we should note. Manu raju, a lot of action on capitol hill. Were following Breaking News from multiple places, including from The Middle East. Lets go to m. J. Lee now whos at the white house where President Biden just released a statement. Breaking news about the two americans that were released earlier by hamas. M. J. , what is the white house saying . Reporter the president released a statement confirming and celebrating the release of those two american hostages that had been held by hamas and gaza and says that from the earliest moments from that attack we have been working around the clock to free american citizens who were taken hostage by hamas, and we have not ceased our efforts to fre those who are still being held. He thanked the government of qatar and israel for their partnership in this work. I just want to be clear here i just checked in with a u. S. Official about that part of the statement where he says the government is continuing to secure its release of those being held, whether we should take that to men there are additional american hostage still being held and i was just told that that is correct, that that is a correct reading of the statement. That in and of itself is big news women now have the answer to the question of whether there are additional american hostage still being held by hamas in gaza. Remember, the u. S. Government had never given a firm number as to the number of hostages being held by hamas in gaza. They always stuck to the language a handful become held. Cnn reported earlier today israelis told the u. S. Government previously that some american hostages being held by hamas were known to be alive and that had raised the question of whether there were additional americans believed to be alive other than the two that had just been released. We also had reported that the u. S. Was not aware of any Proof Of Life Videos Akin to the video that hamas had previously released this week of the 21yearold french israeli. And i have to say, you know, looking at the statement from President Biden, this is, of course, just sort of this rare bright spot in what had been such a bleak and dark few weeks for this white house and of course for this president as well. We have heard him publicly saying over and over again that getting these american hostages back safely has been his utmost, top priority. But he had also been careful in saying, look, theres a lot of stuff thats going on behind the scenes that i basically cant talk about publicly. So now we have this confirmed that two american hostages have been released, are safe, and they have been released by hamas. And what we dont know, of course, is what the prospects are now Going Forward for getting any additional american hostages out of gaza. Certainly, but that is where the focus will now change. He said they are working around the clock to free americans held hostage by hamas. M. J. , thank you for that. We are monitoring the State Department, because there is going to be a briefing here any moment. Obviously about this development here of President Biden saying hes overjoyed to learn about this release of two american hostages by hamas. Well get the very latest from the state Department Live when we come back. From chrome to duckduckgo. Duckduckgo is a browser you download to your mobile and desktop devices. Unlike chrome, the Duckduckgo Browser has privacy builtin. It comes with a private alternative to google search, which doesn■t spy on your searches, and it blocks cookies and creepy ads. And theres no catch. Its free. We make money from ads, but they dont follow you around. Join the millions of people taking back their privacy by Downloading Duckduckgo On Mobile and desktop today. We continue to follow breaking developments in the israelhamas war. The Israeli Defense forces saying that the two americans who are released by hamas are now in idf care. It comes as the idf says the majority of hostages captured by hamas are still alive. I want to speak to of the idf. Can a tell us anything about the two americans . What we know now is theyre undergoing medical checks. Theyre at our army bases. They have been through a harrowing ordeal. Natalie just graduated. Went to israel with her mom. At 6 30 in the morning, terrorists broke into the home and dragged them out at gunpoint. They have been through god knows what. Were making sure theyre as well as possible, and pretty soon theyll be back with their families, which in the darkness of Human Experience is a little bit of night. I believe, rear admiral hagari yesterday or the day before put the number of possible hostages of the 203, which was a little higher than the number 1999 that had been out there before. Do you have a sense of the number of people missing or unaccounted for now in total . Because only some of these people may be dead, some of those people may be hostages. Correct. So that numbers also changing. Unfortunately earlier this morning or late last night, crew were inside a Home Cleaning out a home that they thought was already abandoned. They went up to the attic and found the burnt body of a mother and her 5yearold daughter or 5yearold son that had been hiding from hamas and were burnt alive. Thats two more people who are no longer missing and who are also not hostages. The massacre as you saw with your own eyes was so vast that even matching dna and verifying this we have been doing raids on the border to try to gather as much dna as we can on both sides of the fence, but theres well over 100 100 to 200 people that we dont know if theyre being held by hamas as hostages or if, unfortunately, they have been killed. And carmela dan sorry, my i. P. Went out. I couldnt hear some of what you said, but carmela dan whose body was found and family was notified wednesday, i believe there are three members of her family, one of them a 12yearold boy who theres video of him being kidnapped. It is sickening to imagine these children being held right now. I mean, do you know anything about why these two in particular were released . You know, we have been hearing the reports from the u. S. , you know, from theres going to be upcoming reports. What is unique is those two both are american citizens. I think the mother is maybe dual israeliamerican like i am myself. The daughter is solely american. But, you know, these are the first two, and what we think and know is hamas is trying to paint itself as a Human Rights Organization now by having given back two of the hostages. The real face of evil still there, rockets are raining down on israel as im speaking to you. Lets get back all the hostages, and then we can speak with them. Are you saying you dont think its a coincidence that the two that are released have american citizenship, that thats part of a kind of message to america no some way or a message trying to weaken support for israel . This is right out of the hamas playbook, anderson. We know how they operate. Even without being sure, this will play right into their hand. Hamas, its a very, very typical cycle. They attack, massacre, Throw Rockets at israel, run and hide under their own civilians and turn to america and the International Community and claim Human Rights Violations so well stop so they can regroup. That would play right into this. They want us to pause on eliminating them, which we said we would do. Were at war this em. Theres no break. Were going to eliminate them. This is another tactic for them to try to get us to stop buck theyre mistaken. Hamas is an evil that has to be stopped, and that is what were going to do. Appreciate your time, thank you. Were standing by for the State Department meeting. Were told Secretary Of State Antony Blinken will be speaking. Quick break kts well be right back. So, again, we just want to remind you were standing by for statements from the State Department, Secretary Of State Antony Blinken giving remarks following the release of two american hostages. We do want to get to some other news. Jury selection under way at the Fulton County courthouse when Donald Trumps codefendant took a plea deal in the election subversion case. Thats right, Nick Valencia joining us with more at the courthouse. You had sidney powell, a member of the inner circle, another trump lawyer who took a similar deal yesterday. Was this a surprise . Reporter this was stunning. Stunning is an understatement. Youd be hard pressed to find anyone at the start of this week who could have predicted them not one, but two plea deals secured by the District Attorney as they narrow their case on former president donald trump. Ken cheseboro pleaded guilty to a conspiracy and as a result hell have to pay 5,000, 100 hours of community service. But hes going to have to testify against the remaining codefendants in any future proceeding or trials, and that includes former president donald trump. It was after the cheseboro agreed to this deal they caught up to his defense attorney. I asked him, what would he say to those who say he hasboro is turning his back and calling him a snitch . He didnt snitch against anyone. He went in there, accepted responsibility for what i would view as one of the minor kind of tagon charges in the indictment, and that was that. I could absolutely tell you, if hes called hell answer their questions, but i dont Think Cheseboro Snitched on anyone. It was time for him to put this behind him and go on with his life. I mentioned just how big of a win this was for the Fulton County District Attorneys office. As the d. A. s team left this courtroom after the deal, the lead prosecutor had a smile from ear to ear, and you can tell that the District Attorneys after office was very pleased with itself here. The biggest news, the biggest headline, the d. A. Has not one, but two key witnesses against former president trump. Boris, breanna . Nick, thank you so much. Were still waiting for that state Department Briefing. Again, staecretary of state wil be speaking after hamas release two american hostages. Well be right back. Were waiting for a state Department Briefing with Secretary Of State Antony Blinken that may occur at any moment. I want to get to Guya Calderon whos received the worst news possible this week. Two member of her family have been confirmed by the idf, 80yearold carmela dan and carmela dans 13yearold have been killed. Gaya, im so sorry for this. I know she was your grandmother and your sibling is missing and your dad and s ark h ark r as well. Im so sorry for your loss. I understand it was your grandmothers 80th birthday on tuesday. Yes. Yes, thats true. We actually what do you want people to know about her . My grandma. You tried to celebrate. Yeah, we did. Fy we like the old birthday thing without her. We just was really hoping to see her again, but the day after, we heard the news, so thats not going to happen. My grandma was wonderful woman. She was american also. Its a really big loss. I cant even tell you how i feel. Its like it was the bad day i have in, like, my whole life, actually. Yes, i my grand ma was like, such a beautiful woman. I dont really know what to say about her. Just so sad. Have you received you have gotten any information about any of the members of your family . I know there was a video that was posted of aires being taken by gun from near oz, right by the gate, by the fence line to there. I went to the site yesterday where that video was shot and it is only about an hour a mile and a half from that spot to gaza. You have heard any more information about any of your loved ones . No, i didnt hear anything. You know, im trying to find some videos. It is very hard to watch all of these videos, but, you know, i just want to see his face, maybe my sisters face and maybe my father. I dont know anything else. But i just im still in the same position. I was in this i have this information, like, one week ago, and nothing changed. And youre still looking at s videos. So many people who are not here dont realize that so many Family Members are eager and wanted any kind of sign of images of loved ones. People are looking at telegram and other channels where the sick videos are posted and scrolling through them to find pictures of loved ones. Your still doing that . Yes, i try to do everything i can to find some information about them. I dont know. I just hope that they are okay. You know, every minute is important in this time. Every minute, like, every minute they could kill him. Every minute that is passed, they could kill someone. So, it is really its so important to do everything so fast and to try to bring them back home, like, right now. Not today, yesterday. Last week. You know, every minute is important. Knowing that two hostages were released today, and were waiting for more word on that from the Secretary Of State and in the united states, Antony Blinken, does that how do you feel about that . It is giving hope, you know. It is first step. But i think im not sitting down right now, im just keep going and try to do everything every minute that passes again, they could kill them. They could i dont even know what. But they could do something bad. Their life is in danger. It is so important. It is really given me a little bit of hope. But nothing else. Yeah. Thank you for talking to us. And im so sorry for your loss this week and so sorry for that you havent gotten any more word. Well continue to be in touch with you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Stay with cnn. Were standing by for words from Secretary Of State Antony Blinken about return of two hostages today. All right. So right now youre looking at live pictures at State Department in the Briefing Room because were standing by a pretty extraordinary state Department Briefing where were expecting that Antony Blinken, the Secretary Of State is going to be there and hes going to be speaking about the two american hostages who have been released. Judith and Natalie Rannan from the chicago area. Weve heard President Biden saying in a statement, hes over joyed to learn they have been released and weve heard that from their community as well. Their rabbi in chicago put out a statement that cnn obtained a short time ago saying our prayers have been heard nor judith and natalie and were so overjoyed and at the same time please continue to pray and the note the worry about more hostages being held by hamas is top of mind when you consider that President Biden, we just learned a short time ago, had a conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of israel after the news of this release, talking about a continued effort to get all of the hostages out, especially those Americans Still being held by the terror group. And learning that there are more americans as well. The governments are getting a view, i think, into this process. As it is unfolding in these efforts that are happening. Which is the governments of qatar and israel were partners in this release effort. And Biden Reiterating in a statement that his administration has been working around the clock to free americans who have been held hostage by hamas. Of course, that is the case as well with these other governments as well, with these more than 200 hostages held in gaza, another thing that stood out to me about the statement that was put out by the white house, while the president laid out the u. S. Support for israel and its right to defend itself and protect its citizens. He also discussed with Prime Minister netanyahu, the protection of civilians in gaza caught in the conflict launched by hamas. And there have been questions about whether the aid that is in egypt right now, food, water and medical supplies, would be allowed through the rafah crossing. Initially it was that it would be let through today. And that is not stood up. That was pushed back until at least tomorrow. So well see if following this call with President Biden that perhaps changes. If perhaps, Secretary Of State Antony Blinken may mention than whenever he takes the podium. This is the other effort that american diplomacy is trying to push through. It is so critical because each day we hear the situation is becoming more and more dire there in gaza. But, this is the news. Two hostages released, To American Hostages Released by hamas. On humanitarian grounds as they are saying. Because the mother in this case was not in good health. We are waiting this Press Briefing from the state