the breaking news at this hour, 24 hostages have been released by hamas terrorists. 13 israelis, 10 thai citizens, 1 filipino citizen. they were moved from inside gaza over the rafah crossing into egypt. a short time ago, we got our first look at some of these hos hostages. we have video. it includes pictures of a little girl in a yellow shirt. 1 of the 13 israeli hostages release d. we have other video to show you as well. different vantage points where you can see some of the people, including that girl, who was released and then a number of people boarding a bus from a holding facility inside rafah. a number of these people now on a bus on the move, presumably, back into israel. this is the first part of this pause in fight fighting agreed to by israel, by hamas, to aa low for the release of some 50 hostages over the next several days in exchange for the release of 150 palestinian prisoners in a pause in the fight ing, and breaking moments ago, the identity of two hostages released. their names, margalete moses. and so two women, 72 and 77 or 78, among those who have been released. we are following the movements of these hostages as they experience freedom for the first time in 48 days. let's get to kaitlan collins who is live with the the latest. >> reporter: is we have just gotten a statement confirming that the hostages are back in israel. they say they are with idf special forces and security agency special forces. they underwent an initial medical assessment inside israeli territory, and they will continue to be accompanied by the idf soldiers as they make their way to hospitals to be reunited with their families. for more on the statuses of the hostages, i want to bring in a spokesperson for the israeli government. thank you for joining me. can you confirm all 13 of the israeli hostages are now back in israel? >> the first batch of hostages, thank god, have been released from hamas. they are in the hands of israeli special forces. they have received preliminary medical attention and en route to hospitals where they will be reunited of what's left of their families. many families were murdered. some are being separated from relatives. definitely a fantastic first step, incredibly moving for society, but let's remember that still leaves 215 hostages inside the gaza strip. and none of us here are free until all of them are free. we are committed to that pledge. there will be no one left behind. >> you said they have undergone this initial medical assessment. what have you gleaned from the condition of some of the hostages? how are they doing? >> we're not speaking publicly about their medical situation. this is a sensitive situation, but let's remember, these women and children were brutally abducted on october 7th by the terrorists who burned, beheaded, mutilated, tortured and raped these people's relatives and neighbors in those kibbutzes. they have been held in the dark since then, and their families have been kept in the dark. they were not given any access to the red cross. we had no information about their condition, no information about who is alive and who might be dead. so it's important that they get that medical attention. we will be looking for signs of how they may have been abused by hamas while they were in captivity. i hope to begin a process of rehabi rehabilitation. these are little children. we don't know. have they seen sunlight in the last 50 days? were they fed properly? i don't want to speculate about how awfully they may have been treated, but we're all very anxious to make sure they are safe and begin a long process of physical and psychological rehabilitation. let's remember while many of them have lost family who were murdered, they may still have family in the gaza strip as hostages of hamas. >> were they able to call their families yet? i know that was going to be something that israel was trying to have happen early on as soon as they were with these israeli special forces. do you know if that's happened yet? >> i understand the initial plan is they would be given mobile phones and allowed to contact their families, but they are being transported now to central israel by soldiers who are have been given special sensitivity training to make sure they can deal with children who are traumatized. our soldiers have been told not just to pick up the children, to ask is it okay if i touch you, is it okay if i carry you because they have been into the battles of hell and back in the last 50 days. hopefully we'll be able to get them the care they need and give them the first hugs of whole and safe family inside iz the real, and then we can work to get everyone else out and make sure there is no one left behind. >> we have been watching these videos that we believe are hostages we saw a young girl. we saw two women. do you have an idea of the age range of these hostages that are the first to be released today? >> we have seen the victims' families have put out a list. ween haven't officially confirmed, that but on that list is a little girl as young as 2. who the families are saying were released with a 4-year-old sister and mother. and elderly people in their mid-80s suffering with very serious medical conditions without their medication. the hostages are some of the most vulnerable people in israeli society, who have been held in the most inhumane conditions for nearly 50 i days now. we are hoping and praying for their health and we hope they are going to be able to recover having been through an inhumane trauma that nobody should ever have to endure. >> so just to confirm. you believe it was a mother, a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old from one family that is part of this group of 13? >> the state of israel has not published a list of the hostages who have been released, but i have seen the families have already begun to speak and identify them. let's just wait a little bit longer until we can get official confirmation on that. >> what was the prime minister's reaction, the wartime cabinet's reaction to seeing this deal that they signed off on? come to tfruition, based on officials inspected it to go. >> the deal was not easy. it's never easy to release prisoners from jail who is have been convicted of violent offenses, and many of them have been convicted of attempted murder. it's never easy to do, that but it's a price we're paying because we will not abandon our children in the hands of the rapist of hamas. we're happy to have those children home. this is only the first stage. as we get those foreign nationals out of the gaza strip, that still leaves 215 people inside the gaza strip. their nightmare continues. we we are determined to bring everyone back and apply pressure on hamas. they brought them to release the children. and they didn't realize it was evil to hold a 2-year-old child in captivity it was military pressure. we're going to continue pushing that pressure on hamas until we bring everyone back and make sure there's to one left behind. >> does the way today went give israeli officials hope that the rest of this process, the res loof of the 37 hostages will go smoothly? >> we would definitely like to see the process of releasing those host averages continue. we're still in very early stages of what is happening today. but we are kashsly optimistic. women and children, in exchange for a four-day hostage release pause. at that point, the offer is for every 10 additional hostages hamas releases, we will offer another 1-day pause in the fighting. eventually we'll return. this war has to end with the end of hamas. we will not leave in power the terror organization, the sick monsters that abducted these thirn which the first place, but we are helpful we can get as many hostages out as possible. we put in place the list of prisoners to be released as part of that deal to get as many 100 out in the next few days. >> a spokesperson for the israeli government, thank you for joining us so quickly with this breaking news. >> thank you. of course, this is major news here. an israeli official confirming that all 13 of these hostages, the first to be released as part of this brokered deal, now back in israeli territory. they are on the way to hospitals where they will be accompanied by israeli military officials, but that's where they will be reunited with their families and a pivotal moment. they were transferred to the red cross. now we do have the israeli government confirming they are all back here in israel. >> back in israel. the process very much continues. as you said moving from gaza over the rafah crossing, this was some of the first video we saw of that moment as the hostages experiencing freedom right there. you can see that little girl in the yellow shirt among the hostages released. we have the identity now of a couple more of the hostages. not provided by the israeli government, but these are confirmed by the families themselves. a mother and daughter, they have been released to go along with the two women in their 80s. i spoke to her grandmother tuesday night. so a couple days ago, had her granddaughter had no idea whether the grandmother would be among those released or not. these were the pictures moments ago near the border crossing as they moved out into egypt. all the hostages we are now told are back in israel itself. let's get to jeremy diamond right now. i can go back and show you right here where jeremy is at the crossing. what are you seeing now? >> reporter: we are seeing multiple vehicles with flashing lights headed from the direction of the crossing point. past our position in the direction of that air force base where we understand these hostages would be taken. now that they are firmly on israeli territory, we're seeing multiple vehicles heading in the direction past near where these helicopters are, near our position. we don't know yet whether or not anybody will be brought into the helicopterers. our understanding is that if somebody needs urgent medical attention, then they would be medevaced via hospelicopter. we don't know whether that is the case. that's why it appears that these helicopters are on standby. and we are seeing them now at least the first vehicles with flashing lights just went past the turn off in order to get to these helicopters. several more vehicles are following behind. one of the helicopters is beginning to take off already several of those vehicles took off. i can't see what types of vehicles they are. clearly, this was a significant movement away from the crossing with flashing plights, move ingn the direction that they would go if that was the convoy with those recently freed hostages inside. >> whether it has any of the freed hostages on board or not, we can't be sure. but seeing a convoy of vehicles pass him by. i can show people on the map where he is and where they might be headed. this is the rafah crossing, where we believe the hostages crossed from gaza into egypt. this is where we believe they are headed to the air base right there. you saw a lot of activity right there with that convoy passing by. you had told us the helicopter was standing by as a medevac just in case. they had taken an nenormous levl of precaution here. sgrr that's right. we did the not see those vehicles stop near the helicopter. so all indications are that nobody boarded that helicopter, but instead, it appears to have taken off right at the same time as that convoy passed by. there was just to provide an added degree of protection for these people, who 13 women and children, who have endured so much over these last nearly 50 days. hard to imagine what they have endured while they were in hamas captivity. but now at least they are firmly on israeli soil. we saw a convoy of vehicles leaving from the check point, where we believe that they may have arrived and where they may have crossed into israel. shortly, we will see whether or not they arrive at that air base. >> jeremy diamond, standing by for us at the air base with a convoy of hostages that could be on the move to the hath serum air base. the hostages will be taken to hospitals. clarissa ward is standing by at that hospital. >> reporter: we are here at the snider children's medical c center. behind me there is a held pad. we have seen four or five ambulances, who were park ed up there. we saw a flurry of activity earlier with a number of medical personnel, paramedics, security personnel as well. some of them on their phones sort of milling around that area, presumably, preparing the area for the potential arrival of these now free hostages. the people who are expected to be brought here are the children hostages and children hostages who maybe with their mothers as well. so you mentioned that we know there's a 6-year-old with her mother daniel. they could be brought here. they were from the near oz. can i be its, a community of 400 people, a kwoert of the residents were either killed or kid napped during the october 7th attacks. we have been talking a lot to hospital staff here, who have really gone to great lengths to try to ensure that the area in the hospital where these now free hostages will be brought to does not look like a hospital, that it feels like a warm and intimate space. the wording they use was that they want it to feel like a beautiful hotel. that they have lots toys and that they have hand picked the most experienced and most relevant staff to work with these children and potentially mothers as well. they talked about the importance of having the best psychiatrists. there are also social workers who will be paired to each individual family. and now a heightened sense of excitement. obviously, trepidation, because there is the real understanding for medical personnel and people who work in the hospital that the children will probably be very different little children to the ones that they were on october 6th. that they have undergone a tremendous trauma. but for those not seriously injured, they will be most likely brought here to the medical facility inside. there's an area where many journalists have also gathered. they are expecting to have a press conference a bit later on once we see the arrivals. and that hel ipad in the background was the focus of c significant activity over the last few hours, as everybody gets ready for the arrivals. >> clarissa ward in tel aviv at the children's medical center right there, we will wait and see if any of these freed hostages arrive where you are. the prime minister's office just released the name of all 13 freed israeli hostages. i'm going to read them because i know there are people watching from around the world and these names may mean something. it's important to the people viewing right now. karen munder, ruth munder, margilet moses, daniel eloni. those are the 13 israeli hostages, the names of those hostage who is have just been relowsed. this will be an incredible moment for the family who is have been standing vigil for 48 straight days, but also with the knowledge that some 200 hostages remain inside gaza. our live coverage continues right after this. we are live on the ground in tel aviv, where we have just gotten confirmation from the israeli government all 13 hostages released today by hamas from gaza for the first time since october 7th are now safely back in israel. they have undergone medical screenings and initial checkups. they are on their way to israeli hospitals. they are being accompanied by israeli special forces, and once they arrive at those hospitals that they will be reunited with their families. at least 12 of the 13 hostages who are freed today came from kibbutz near oz.. that was one scenes of complete slau slaughter. at least 12 of them have now been release d. we have gotten confirmation from a spokesperson for the kibbutz. those ages of what we are seeing come across range from 2 years old to 80 years old. the 2-year-old has now been returned along with her sister and also their 34-year-old mother also being held hostage. this is huge welcome news for all of these families, for everyone here in israel as they are watching all of this incredibly closely. but it is 13 out of the 50 expected in this deal that has been brokered between israel and hamas. there are still 215, according to the israeli government, hostages still being held in gaza. they are tracking all this as we are watch ing these minute by minute developments. what are you seeing from the air base where you can right now. >> reporter: we're waiting. we're told by the military that those 13 host ages and the thai nationals that have also been res leased are expected to be making their first stop inside israel, as they are further processed and given medical checks and psychological assessments as well. after that process is over, there's going to be food ask drink and showers available, changes of clothes, things like that. after that process is over. they will be boarding helicopters at this air base. we'll bring that to you. and they will be taken away to the various hospitals in israel depending on their specific medical needs. but you're right. it's been a long and difficult logistical operation. and i haven't heard yet about what the situation is with the palestinians who are meant to be released from israeli jails after these host j as were released into israeli custody. but we're expecting to have something on that soon. if it does go off, as it seems to be going off at the moment, without much of a hitch, then that is a positive sign for the rest of the days that have been agreed. there have been four days of pause of the fighting. if this day goes off without much of a hitch, that's very positive for the other days following in that way. so incredibly excite asking happy news for many people tonight across israel. but also happiness tinged with a bitter sweet sentiment, because there's so many people to remain hostages inside the gaza strip. >> a sigh of relief for these family who is have become so close during this torchous process. matthew chance, we'll continue to check back in with you. because of what happened on that day and because so many families were left with members of theirs kidnapped by hamas, it's created this bonding for these families, who they are the only ones who know what each other is going through, the agony they have felt every day missing their loved ones. oren liebermann is a n a place that's become known as hostage square. this has been a place where you have seen familiesth gather. they have made their pleas to the government clear. what are you seeing there tonight? >> reporter: this is a place where so many of the families that have something fundamental lising, they have come together to form a new family. a lot of one of the efforts here has been on this wall behind me. the wall of the art museum would rotate through the pictures of the missing. it used to say bring me home now. for 9 first time, the wording has changed that says "i have returned home." it's showing the pictures of the 13 first israeli hostages released under this agreement. a 5-year-old. we have seen a number of these pictures come up. yafa adar, the previous photo there, it's an enormous release to the loved ones of those whose picture is being broadcast to see their picture on the wall with the title of "i have returned home." many of them, as we have learned, it's worth noting that we spoke to somebody else here just a short time ago who has a loved one who has not yet come home. she talked about the joy of hearing that the sol of that family, some of the kibbutz family has come home, but how difficult it will be wait ing fr news thatter her cousin and son have been released and freed and able to come home after such a long time in gaza. you can see the pictures continue to rotate. a 72-year-old and that crucial headline up top, this is where they hope to add to the pictures over the next several days. it becomes the full 50 and beyond that. this square will probably always be nknown as hostage square, bu there will be a joy in the gathering and a reason to celebrate as they add more photos up there that say "i have returned home". >> everywhere you go in israel, you see these fliers. they are on people's shirts. they are inside restaurants. they are everywhere you go where you see that saying bring me home pop to see that message change is obviously sufficient a sigh is of relief. you look at some of the women, and i was looking at a statement from the spokesperson, one of the women who has been brought home, it's such a relief for her family. her husband is still being held hostage by hamas in gaza. obviously, he's not on the list of women and children that is expected to be in this first group. it underscores what a bittersweet moment this truly is. oren liebermann, thank you. as we continue to monitor what is happening here, the statements coming in from israeli officials, what we do know right now is these 13 israeli hostages are now back heem in israel. they have undergone an initial screening. they are on their way to hospitals where they are going to be reunited with their families. the first time they have tasted freedom since october 7th. continuing to monitor the live developments with our special coverage. we'll be back in a moment. welcome back. our breaking news coverage, 24 hostages released by hamas terrorists today. they are all now in freedom, all 13 israeli hostages are back on israeli territory. we believe they are moving by bus from the crossing right now towards the air base. they will be flown to other hospitals inside israel. just moments ago, we got the names of all 13 israeli hostages released. i will read through them with their approximate ages . daniel aloni, emilia aloni, aviv asher, 2, raz asher, ha hana katzir, 76, canna peri, the names of the 13 hostages released. all except one residents of the kibbutz near oz. all of them israeli citizens. no americans yet released today. though, it is believed it will happen over the next few days. let's get to our senioren correspondent alex marquardt. what are you hearing from u.s. officials on all of this? >> john, one name not on that list today is abigail edan. president biden has spoken about her. she has been 3 years old. she turns 4 years old today. there was certainly a hope among american officials she would be released in the first group. now it appears she is not. we got the sense that would not happen today yesterday when the israelis started telling families of the 13 that they would be coming home. and so there is an expectation, a hope among american officials that in these four days of pause, three americans will be released. two women and young abigail. now the question after this first day is how many more hostages can we expect released tomorrow? the way this has been set up is that each side would present the other through the red cross with the list. we're expecting a minimum of 10 hper day. s that's part of the dooel. it could go higher. then there was this other surprise of the 11 foreign nationals who were also released. john, 50 to be released over 4 days, but american officials have said throughout this process that the hope is that there will be more who are released and this pause can be extended beyond the four days. the deal was set up in such a way that in order to incentivize the release of further hostages, there is expectation that it could go higher that be this initial 50. another couple dozen perhaps. and then once you broaden it out beyond the women and children, there are also the questions about who would be left. now we still have more than 200 hostages left in hamas and other groups custody. there are foreign nationals like the ones we saw released are relater i men. there's an expectation they might be one of the first groups to be released after women and children. the toughest group is going to be the idf soldiers, both men and women being held by hamas and these other groups. they will be the most valuable hostages, if if you will, in terms of leverage for hamas to hold on to. so i think there are two big questions now. how much longer can this pause be extended beyond the four days? assuming all goes well, and then when could the fighting resume. because we have heard israeli officials saying that they do intend very much to get back to the fighting, to get back to their goal of trying to eradicate hamas. there was so much focus on this exchange today to make sure this went well to prove this mechanism works torks prove this deal can hold. we have had 13 hours of a peaceful pause in this fighting, it appears to be holding. so american officials are watching this extremely closely to make sure that they can get out, not just these three americans in the next few days, but as many hostages as possible. >> you bring up such excellent points there. 13 israeli hostages released today, 10 thai citizens, more than 200 hostages remain, including abigail edan, who turns 4 today. this is abigail's birthday today. still held hostage inside gaza. our thanks to alex marquardt for that. let's talk now to cnn global affairs analyst kimberly dozer. we have been wafting closely what's been happening all day long here. all 13 israeli hostages back on israeli soil. we have seen remarkable video. a significant step today, how significant? >> it shows proof of concept that with qatar organizing this and with the u.s. bringing israel along, they managed to keep no fighting on the ground or at least limited fighting. there have been some skirmishes between troops and palestinians who are trying to go back to gaza and non-lethal methods like tear gas sed were used to drive them back. but the guns seem to have fallen silent, ask this first trench lends hope to four days of full transfers each day. possibly up to 10 days. the israeli cabinet had approved a truce of up to 10 days from the first releases, and u.s. officials have told us, as alex was mentioning, that they want to exploit every single possible day bringing back as many as 100 hostages in just this period of time. but that leaves something like 140, including those troops. and if israel a at that point decides that it has to start fighting again, it's going to face pressure from from the families inside the country and the international community, because ten days is not enough time to get in the aid needed to help the 1.7 million displaced gazas that the u.n. reports don't have proper shelter or food or water this point. >> today is very much about the families, these people ages 2 to 85, who have been released held hostage for 48 days. but there's also a military and diplomatic effort very much underway. who has the leverage here, as we lock at this? as israel has said, we will pause the fighting, as long as hamas continues to release a minimum of ten hostages a day. does that give israel leverage or hamas the leverage? >> the uncomfortable reality here is this is playing out exactly as hamas planned it. they are deciding who they release. israel is the supply, having to cease-fire against an adversary that committed horrible atrocities on october 7th. that's going to keep playing out. it took years to get back dozens of troops if their custody, that means anguish for the israeli families and a real incentive for the defense force to start fighting again. they think hamas is going to change its tactics and raise the price of releasing the rest of these troops back to safety. >> what we're looking at now on the screen is the hel ipad outside the children's hospital. that's where clarissa ward has been. four of the hostages we leased today, the ages are 9, 6, 4 and 2. a 2-year-old, who has been held hostage for 48 days. obviously, public opinion inside israel, they put a lot of pressure on the israeli government to work for a hostage release. at this point, is the public pressure pointing toward we want a full hostage release? we'll continue to pressure the government to pause the fighting until they are all out war, do you think the public opinion at some point will be saided by 100, if that's what it comes to? >> i think for the families of those who have been take, they want every single one back. but of course, israel is somewhat divided politically. there are the extreme elements of the government and the people they represent, who think that this is just empowering terrorists. they will want to resume the fighting. he has to make sure that wing is willing to prosecute this war. in the meantime, the tough part that's going to happen for the hostages now is once they feel calm and safe, israeli security professionals will have to question them, how they were taken, where they were taken, what they saw, what they smelled, how they were treated, part of it is to get information that might lead to the locations of other hostages, and part of it also is just to build a list of what behavior they were exposed to for possible criminal cases, and as israel has threatened for targeting every last hamas member responsible from here as long as it takes. >> they will take care of these people as best they can, but when the time is right, they will learn what they can from kim dozier, thank you so much for being with us this morning. or now this afternoon. again, 24 hostages freed by hamas terrorists today, all 13 israelis back on israeli soil. you're looking at video right now, including of a young girl from the moments where they crossed from gaza into freedom in egypt. our special live coverage continues right after this. this is cnn's special live coverage. 24 hostages freed today. this first of four scheduled days of hostage releases in including 13 israeli citizens, we believe on the move now, toward this air base in southern israel, then will move to hospitals throughout the country. let's get to kaitlan collins in tel aviv. >> the next steps we know here are further medical screenings for so many of the hostages. the 13 of them who are now the rin ones that are back here in israel for first time since october 7th. they underwent a initial medical screening when they were transferred over, they're being accompanied by israeli special forces. but it is this next step that is going to be a critical one. where they will not only be going to the hospitals, john, but they're also going to be reunited with their families for first time. they have been provided with mobile phones so they can make that initial call as soon as they were handed over from hamas to the red cross and then through egypt to the israeli officials so they could make a call. it will be first time for them to see them in person during that, of course, and continuing to monitor all their developments here now that they have been fully released and are back in israel tonight. >> you're looking at pictures from earlier, where some of these hostages including the 13 israelis, ten thai citizens, one filipino citizen, being loaded on to buses and taken away. i want to leave you, i think, with the names and ages of these hostages because it is so important. adina, 72. karen, 54. danielle, 45. koran, 34. emilia, 5. raz, 4. aviv, 2. and channa, the times of israel said she is 79. all of them were residents of the nkibbutz. >> saw a fourth of its nebs kidnapped or abducted that day. 12 have been released and returned back to israel tonight, john. >> this is cnn special live coverage tracking the release of the hostages. we'll have much more after this.