good afternoon, everybody. i'm martha maccallum. we're getting new indications of movement of 11 hostages. this is a huge moment for these people and their families. they're in the hands of the red cross, a huge relief for these people who have been held for more than 50 days. they're finally headed guard freedom. we understand no americans are included in this group. we have followed very closely the one child, abigail adan, that was released. she's an american citizen. she was released during this pause period that we've been in for several days now. this child went through absolute hell. her smile is testimony to the resilience of children. but somewhere in her conscious is a horrific experience she watched. the terrorists killed her parents in front of her. her father had used himself as a shield to protect his little girl. he was killed. she then had to crawl out, according to this story that has been told, from under his body. she then ran to a neighbor's and then hamas kidnapped all of that group. and then they took her hostage. so john kirby was at the podium just a moments ago. he's going to join us on "the story" as well. and he says that eight to nine americans are still being held hostage. remember, the two american women came out in the very early days. now we have abigail when has been released. and new we're waiting for eight to nine more american hostages along with all of the other over 200 hostages. about 189 believed to be left in custody at this point who are israeli, american israeli and many from other countries as well. so now we're in the middle of a 48 hour extension to get more people out as this truce, cease fire, however you want to look at it, continues. so obviously a very, very tense time for these families. they want to know who is on the list, who might be next. they hope they'll see their loved ones. here's a video of the joyous reunions. so the list has been obviously the subject of heated and ongoing debate. who is on the list. who is not on the list. we're scratching the surface here of what these individuals -- you can see this little girl hugging her mom. these are absolutely -- imagine what these families have been through. this child is running down the hall at the first sight of his parent. we know a little bit so far. we know they were fed very little. many people lost several pounds over, 10, 15 pounds in some cases. they were held in the darkness quite a bit. a 12-year-old has to be reminded by her family members that she doesn't have to whisper anymore. so john kirby is here in just a moment. we'll speak with john about what we can expect for the remaining americans who are being held hostage. obviously, we want all of these hostages released. for the white house, the americans are a priority to be sure. so we want to bring in first tal heinrich. good to have you with us. thanks for joining us today. you know, this is a difficult position for israel to be in. clearly the terrorists took all of these people for a reason. these releases have forced a stop in the counter attack against hamas. how hard is it going to be to eradicate hamas with these extended periods of cease fire? >> it's a very difficult position to be at. we didn't want this obviously. hamas wanted this war. hamas dragged us in to this war. we didn't even anticipate this war. but we have to complete the mission, which is to bring back all hostages home and eradicate the hamas regime in gaza. i'll quote the great thomas seoul. there's no good solutions, only trade-offs. this is the outline that we have greed upon. hopefully we'll see -- i'm saying hopefully because 11 hostages are still not in israeli territory at this point. i hope this will bring us to a total of 50 hostages as per the deal released over the course of four days, in which we exchange agreed to a humanitarian pause in the fighting. we home this mechanism in place will see more hostages released. we said for every extra ten hostages, we al agree to an extra day of humanitarian pause in the fighting. you're right. it's complicated. you talked about abigail adan, a 4-year-old israeli miles an hour. watch her smile when she's reunited with what is left from her family. we went to tell abigail that she's safe, that hamas terrorists will never touch her again, never rain missiles on her community again. but right now we can't say this completely. is she really safe as long as hamas is still in power? no. for that reason, we will continue, we will resume the fighting and we will bring an end to this terrorist regime. >> so you might have seen the images over the weekend of sort of effigies of wrapped bodies in front of the white house. people holding signs for a cease fire. imploring. biden to back a more permanent cease fired in this situation. obviously he's under a lot of political pressure, he's losing traction with young voters in america. what do you say to that? what do you think prime minister netanyahu -- i know they're in touch all the time. what are these conversations like? >> yes, jerusalem and washington are in touch on an hourly basis. we're grateful for president biden and his moral support and moral leadership that people of america have been demonstrating. if it wasn't for the president's input, i don't think that we would have seen these 50 hostages, hopefully 50 as we're speaking that is underway, being released. we're very thankful for that. president biden stated correctly just a few days ago that hamas only respond to pressure. that's the only thing that works. only thanks to military pressure and diplomatic pressure that we exerted in various ways that we have seen the release of these hostages. we'll continue. how can we talk about a permanent general cease fire when hamas leaders openly say that they would get ready for a second, third and fourth time? what option do we have? we don't. >> martha: i think back to -- i'm about to talk to john kirby. we talked about it at the time. the release of five american prisoners for five iranian prisoners and $6 billion in to iran coffers. the deal was criticized as completely out of balance. do you think that that motivated iran's proxies, they see that, look what we can get? they went in there, took 240 people to hold as hostages and pawns in this horrific game that is going on. do you think that that move by the u.s. government prompted this strategy by hamas? >> iran, the iranian regime, i would say -- i don't want to say iran. the iranian regime is evil. they have the palestinian jihad that is also holding israeli hostages right now. they're fully funded by iran. we know what the houthis are doing and hezbollah. we're telling them don't try us. iran is pulling all the strings behind the scenes. they -- the pressure should be applied to them. international pressure. that's what we want to see. >> martha: the images that we're seeing on the screen, these are just released. these are some of the 11 hostages that are right now traveling in the red cross custody across the gaza border in to egypt and then they will make the trip on to israeli territory. but the moment that they are in israeli territory and out of gaza territory, these young people and we have been trying to break this down. so there's nine people between the ages of 3 and 51. you're just seeing these little faces that are happy once again. we pray they're all in good health. 18 of them are under the age of 30. two under the age of 30. nine under the age of 18. all sides have been working hard to bring to freedom in think highly complicated situation. more of them -- you have to wonder what goes through the mind of the hostages when they see some people leave and others are left behind. a lot of men that are left behind, a lot of fathers, husbands, brothers that are still being held and americans among them. no americans in this group. we're waiting for eight to nine americans to be released. tal, just a final thought. >> israelis have been glued to their tv screens. in these hours, waiting to watch these heart warming images, this little tiny momentary sigh of relief amid the agony and suffering we're going through as a nation. it's unfathomable. it's a torture. it's a torture of mind and soul. hamas terrorists know it, thatter with a nation that values life to this extent unlike them. they openly say they want to sacrifice the palestinians for obliterating israel. >> martha: are you worried about the palestinians that have been released? they've been depicted as young and that there's sort of an equivalency. >> of course we're worried. they're releases terrorists. these are people involved in terrorist activity no matter their gender or age. that's not the point. the point is they've been involved in attempting stabbing attack, murder, throwing molotov cocktails at israelis. the way they're being received by their communities in the west bank being celebrated, that's what israeli is dealing with. glorifying martyrs. >> thanks, tal. we'll see you soon. we hope we have more stories to tell you in the coming days. idf and israel continue to try to eradicate hamas so nine of these children have to worry about this again. we're on this breaking news at this moment. the release of more hostages waiting for them to cross in to israeli territory. john kirby will join us in just moments. we ask him about the americans that are still held, eight to nine americans. we've seen little movement. three total have been released since the beginning of this. we'll talk to john kirby about that in moments coming up. [city ambience sounds] [car screech] [car door slam] [camera shutter sfx] introducing ned's plaque psoriasis. [camera shutter sfx] he thinks his flaky, red patches are all people see. otezla is the #1 prescribed pill to treat plaque psoriasis. [ned?] it can help you get clearer skin and reduce itching and flaking. with no routine blood tests required. doctors have been prescribing it for nearly a decade. otezla is also approved to treat psoriatic arthritis. don't use otezla if you're allergic to it. serious allergic reactions can happen. otezla may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. some people taking otezla had depression, suicidal thoughts, or weight loss. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. [crowd gasp] ♪ with clearer skin, movie night is a groovy night. [ting] ♪ live in the moment. ask your doctor about otezla. for almost 100 years, harry and david has been making gourmet gifts to share with loved ones near and far. because giving is about more than a day on the calendar. we believe the world would be a better place if we all shared more. harry and david. life is a gift, share more. the power goes out and we still have wifi to do our homework. and that's a good thing? great in my book! who are you? no power? no problem. introducing storm-ready wifi. now you can stay reliably connected through power outages with unlimited cellular data and up to 4 hours of battery back-up to keep you online. only from xfinity. home of the xfinity 10g network. >> martha: we're just getting these pictures as this story breaks, they are right now being transported. they're in red cross custody. 11 individuals. you can see their beautiful faces on the screen right now. they've been through a life-changing experience. you have a 51-year-old, a 34-year-old with two children. we're working to match the faces with the names. but this is a huge moment after 50-plus days of being held hostage in the tunnels by hamas with little food, sleeping on what have been compared to like waiting room chairs, which are obviously not very comfortable. these -- look at these children's faces who are now on their way to freedom as we wait for them to be in israeli custody. the white house is saying that they hope that they will see more americans released in the next two-day extension period, which was just announced a couple hours ago. former israeli national security adviser, is with us. we'll speak with him in just a moment. first to jeff paul who is covering this live breaking story for us from tel aviv. hi, jeff. >> yeah, martha. we're watching the images right now as we wait for those red cross vans and vehicles to cross in to israeli territory like we've seen over the past three days. so far no confirmation of them making it in to israel yet. but they're on their way. like we've seen before, today had a few delays. this speaks to how fragile this deal is between israel and hamas. not a lot of trust between both sides. here's what we know about the 11 released today. nine of them are kids. the two youngest just three years old, almost two moms in that group as well. just a day before, 14 israelis made that same journey where they now join 26 other israelis released in the previous days. they're all in some sort of stage of treatment and recovery after spending roughly seven weeks, some more than 50 days likely exclusively in the darkness of hamas tunnels. however, there's still well-more than 100 hostages that have yet to be released by hamas. so we could see more being freed over the next two days as qatari officials broke the news a little while ago against extending the temporary truce. israel has said that they would extend the pause in fighting by one day for every ten additional israeli hostages released. keep in mind, once hamas stops releasing hostages, israel will start back their operations in gaza to rescue the remaining hostages. >> we want to receive another additional 50 hostages beyond tonight on our way to bringing everyone home. as soon as that frame work expires, israel will continue with full force towards those three objectives. eliminating hamas, making sure the gaza strip can never be a security threat to israeli and releasing all the hostages. >> we know more aid trucks made it in to gaza today as well. we're awaiting confirmation that more than 30 palestinian prisoners will be released from israeli jails. martha? >> martha: okay, jeff. thank you very much. good to have you with us live. less bring in a former israeli national security adviser and now senior international fellow at the foundation of the prime min minister. welcome back to the program. >> thank you. >> martha: what do you know about how this came together and what can you tell us about hamas's strategy and who is being release and who isn't? >> we're seeing hamas' strategy to extend this rubber band, if you would. hamas knows that eventually we'll get them. they know that. and they're doing what you'd expect from any terrorist organization. difficult to get into a mindset of how they work. but psychological warfare is a core piece of what they're doing. they took the hostages, the leader of hamas said he took them as bargaining chips. they admit it. they want to see the israeli society suffer from within. i think they didn't expect to see how strong we were in coming altogether from all across the political sphere in israel to support that. the fact that we'd wrath very the hostages alive rather than going after them is something that we will do as a nation. this has been negotiated for weeks. they want to differentiate between the mother and the children. they want to break families apart. i'm happy the government insisted on getting as long amount as possible and to have the families together. that's one of the reasons that today's release was delayed and another family with the youngest of hostages, 11 months old and he's still there with his brother and mother. we're waiting to see them together. i'm happy to see the 3-year-old twins back home to their families. we'll need to do this until they're all home. >> martha: what can they learn from these hostages? so far we have seen one person a young woman, an idf soldier extracteded by israeli forces. it would be wonderful to have their -- have an ability to get some people out without this bargaining chip that you talk about. how much can they learn from the hostages that might help that? >> i assume we get to learn a lot about this. we need to understand who we're facing. has knows that we'll interrogate them and understand the maximum. that's why -- hamas prepared for this. we shouldn't expect to be wherever they were or kind of based on the intelligence that we'll get from those families. hamas are in the south of gaza. that's been the case for four weeks now. when the idf entered shifa, we knew they weren't there. they fled to the south. what is most important, we'll get an understanding of how hamas operates, how brutal they are and inhumane they can treat young children and babies and women and elderly. operationally, we'll get some information. the collective effort by the idf gives more on that. the intel we had to release that female soldier at the beginning of the war was very important. we knew we wouldn't have many chances like that after the first time. they learned as well. they're not dispersed in that way. this is war fighting. we're fighting a terrorist organization. it's difficult to understand how they work with human shields, running around. they won't just be there for us. we're only there to dig them out. >> martha: we'll see how many are alive, how much proof we're given or your government is given where these individuals are as this progresses. there's 198 still down there we hope alive. doctor, thanks very much. great to have you with us. thank you, sir. also breaking right now, a 74th attack on u.s. forces in iraq and syria. so this is escalating and the pressure is consistent here with these attacks. thank god we haven't lost any u.s. service men so far in these. we have learned that a one-way drone targeted u.s. forces at a patrol base in syria. these numbers continue the rise daily. david perkins, four-star general, on these ongoing provocations against the united states. where is this going? that is next. wife, homeowner, and the family bookkeeper, you're the first to know when high rate debt is stressing your budget. but your family's service has earned you a big advantage. the va home loan benefit. with the lower rate newday 100 va cash out loan, you can pay off high rate credit cards and car loans. and can save $6,000 a year. that's real money you can use to take care of your family and home. generalized myasthenia gravis made my life a lot harder. but the picture started changing when i started on vyvgart. vyvgart is for adults with generalized myasthenia gravis who are anti-achr antibody positive . in a clinical trial, vyvgart significantly improved most participants' ability to do daily activities when added to their current gmg treatment. most participants taking vyvgart also had less muscle weakness. and your vyvgart treatment schedule is designed just for you. in a clinical study, the most common side effects included urinary and respiratory tract infections, and headache. vyvgart may increase the risk of infection. tell your doctor if you have a history of infections or symptoms of an infection. vyvgart can cause allergic reactions. available as vyvgart for iv infusion and now as vyvgart hytrulo for subcutaneous injection. additional side effects for vyvgart hytrulo may include injection site reactions. talk to your neurologist about vyvgart. >> martha: breaking moments ago, we're learning there's been yet another attack by iranian proxies on u.s. forces in the middle east. we're now to 74 attacks of this nature since the beginning, since october 7, the beginning of the israel-hamas war. following a significant escalation over the weekend after houthis fired two ballistic missiles towards the u.s.s. mason, which is in the gulf of aden. they came just miles short of striking that u.s. naval vessel. in a moment, we'll speak with david perkins, retired four-star general. get his thoughts on this and how prepared we are for what is headed our way and coming our way in terms of these attacks on u.s. forces. first to jennifer griffin live at the pentagon with the very latest on all of this. hi, jennifer. >> hi, martha. two hours after rescuing an israeli tanker if five armed hijackers off of the coast of yemen, the u.s. trafficked two missiles fired towards the sunia i have destroyer. both missiled splashed down in the gulf of aden. u.s. military sources say the houthi threat continues to ebb escalate. sunday, five armed gunman seized the tanker after boarding from a skiff pulling up alongside the tanker which had a low freeboard, which gave the hijackers even access. it's not clear who sent them. the crew locked themselves in the safe room. the gunmen tried to beat down the door to the safe room and exited the ship and made their way back to the shores of yemen. u.s. navy personnel fired warning shots and pursued and arrested them as a u.s. helicopter gunship flew cover. the hijackers are being held on the u.s.s. mason, being questioned by the u.s. military. in 2016, the u.s.s. mason found itself in a similar situation off of the cost of yemen and fired an sm 2 missile to defend itself against houthi cruise missiles. it was the first time a u.s. warship has fired an sm 2 missile in combat. on sunday, the u.s.s. eisenhower passed through the straight of hormuz. john kirby said the aircraft carrier strike group was there to deliver a message. >> it's targeted at any actor in the region, nation, state or otherwise that may have considerations of widening this conflict. >> the houthis don't seem to be getting the message. interesting to note also that a japanese navy destroyer assisted the u.s.s. mason. three chinese war ships were in the air but did not answer to the 59 distress calls from the israeli tanker. >> martha: thanks, jennifer. with that, we bring in david perkins. thanks for being back to the program. i'd like to start where jennifer just left off with the aggressiveness of the houthi rebels against israeli ships in the region and the fact that china held back and did not get involved. japan got involved and helped to extricate some situations and right the ship, so to speak. what do you see going on here? what is at play in these waters, general? >> it is very interesting. you can look at this as an isolated incident. really what it is an illumination of who all the actors are and how they cooperate directly and indirectly and how they have the common really goal and that is to continue to exert iranian influence in that part of the world. more specifically get the u.s. out of that part of the world. the u.s. is always the indispensable nation in the globe and especially in that part of the globe. the fact that you have the houthis that are proxies of the iranians, conducting this act of piracy and the fact that there's multiple distress signals and the chinese do nothing gives you an insight in to some of the cooperation that we know well is going on between the chinese and the iranians, the russias and the iranians collective with hezbollah, hamas and houthis that are all proxies. these are not isolated incidences. they're part of a larger strategy aimed at not only israel but the united states. >> martha: what about the saudis? you know, you can sort of see the alignment in this equation. it appears the iranians are going after saudi interests, u.s. interests, israeli interests. china stands back. there's a lot of emboldened behavior on the part of iran in all of these regions right now. why is that? >> well, iran thinks that they have obviously israelis attention is captive dealing with gaza and hamas. the u.s., we're always in that part of the world. we are trying to isolate the conflict so that it stays just between israel and gaza and doesn't expand in to other parts of the mideast or to other parts of the world. the saudis are under no illusion that the iranians are their friends or want them to do well. so again, this is the part of the iranian's attempt to really deleverage not only israel but the saudis, other gulf nations and they will leverage whatever appropriate sort of -- what i'd call a parasitic nation such as china and russia that are in it for the ability to put the u.s. at a disadvantage. >> martha: well, it's clear when you look at these chess pieces on the board that we are in a tenuous moment and that there's a lot of escalation and testing going on of these alliances. we'll see how they hold up and where this goes. general perkins, thank you. good to have you with us, sir. so we have been covering this breaking news. we're waiting to see actual vehicles and as has been pointed out, each one of these hostage releases has taken place in a different way. a different exit path in some ways, different vehicles. we saw the helicopters involved at one point. we'll cover that for you and zoom in as soon as we see the movement of these 11 hostages. none are americans in this group. we have eight or nine still being held. john kirby joins us live in moments from the white house. d y down the rent drain, so to speak. after watching the admiral that just made up my mind, i said, i'm calling newday usa tomorrow. 70 more dollars over my rent. i'm actually owning my own home because newday usa focuses on the va homeloan benefit. that's their expertise. i felt like i would definitely get a better shake. the admiral said that my service is, you know, my down payment. for us that was important not to be able to have to put anything down. i was aviation in the marine corps, 30 some million dollar aircraft. if the country, american people can put that kind of trust and confidence, the equipment that we fix, literally $200,000 home. can you help me? can somebody put a little bit of belief in me? and i felt like i felt newday did do that. if you can afford rent, you can afford to own. to maximize that va loan benefit and not pay anything out of my pocket was tremendous. i had my doubts, but i don't anymore. israel is under attack. the war against israel began with the murder of hundreds of precious children. countless israelis are enduring the devastating anguish of lost loved ones. the jewish people have become refugees in their own homeland. i simply can't stress enough the urgency of this situation. it's more dire than ever before. your gift of $45 will make sure that the people of israel have mobile bomb shelters, emergency supplies, and the hot nutritious meals that they so desperately need. this would be an incredibly important time for all of the friends of the international fellowship of christians and jews to stand with our friends in israel because we believe it's what god would have us do. please don't hesitate. call, scan, or visit our website now to make your life-saving donation. you'll find them in cities, towns and suburbs all across america. millions of americans who have medicare and medicaid but may be missing benefits they could really use. extra benefits they may be eligible to receive at no extra cost. and if you have medicare and medicaid, you may be able to get extra benefits, too, through a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan. call now to see if there's a plan in your area and to see if you qualify. all of these plans include doctor, hospital and prescription drug coverage. plus, something really special, the humana healthy options allowance. your allowance. to help pay for essentials like eligible groceries, utilities and rent. even over-the-counter items. and whatever you don't spend gets carried over to the next month. plus, with a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan you'll get other important benefits. all of these plans include dental coverage. with two free cleanings a year. plus, fillings, and a yearly exam. vision coverage, including eye exams and a yearly allowance for eye wear. and hearing benefits. including routine hearing exams and coverage toward hearing aids. you'll also get free rides to and from medical appointments. best of all, you'll pay nothing for covered prescriptions, even brand name ones, all year long. and zero dollars for many routine vaccines at in-network retail pharmacies. plus, you'll have access to humana's large networks of doctors and specialists. so, if you have medicare and medicaid, call now to see if there's a plan in your area that will give you extra benefits, including an allowance to help pay for essentials. plus, no-cost for covered prescriptions. and coverage for routine dental, vision and hearing. a knowledgeable, licensed humana sales agent will explain your coverage options. and, if you're eligible, help you enroll over the phone. it's that easy! call today and we'll also send this free guide. humana. a more human way to healthcare. >> the listed are developed by hamas and the israelis develop their list of prisoners that they'll released. we're not involved in the drafts of the lists and the determination on hamas' side of who comes out on any given day. >> martha: so no americans among the 11 hostages in the process of being freed at this hour and everyone rejoices for their release as we wait for the americans to come home as well. the white house estimates eight to nine u.s. citizens are still being held by hamas. so with that, we brings in nsc coordinate irfor strategic communications, john kirby. good to have you with us today. >> good to be with you. >> martha: given the fact that we have eight to nine americans, why are we not involved in the list making? >> we are actively involved in this deal and in keeping it going, we're glad to see it got extended another extra couple days. that's 20 more hostages that will get released. that's a good thing. the parameters of who is on the list every day is something that is drawn up by hamas and by our israeli counter parts. we will keep working very hard to make sure that the americans that we know are being held hostage get home to their families. this is something on the top of the president's list and he's working this by the hour. >> martha: we know the president spoke with the prime minister of qatar. i would have imagined that in that conversation he's saying to him, i want those americans out in this group. we want them out now. that's the priority. make sure they're on the list. >> he has made it clear to the amir of qatar and prime minister netanyahu how strongly we want to see the american hostages get released. it's important to remember the only kinds of hostages hamas are willing to let go are women and children. we think the majority of americans are male. the chances of getting out soons are nod -- we know there's two american women that are still left to be released. we don't have perfect visibility on them and their condition. we're working hard to get them returned. >> martha: when these extended 48 hour period is agreed to, is there any discussion in that of well, we want to see pictures, we want to know, for example, is hersh alive. we've seen the video. he lost half of his arm. what are you seeing to those families about how much of a priority they are? because they are american citizens. >> we've been in touch with the families and making it clear we're doing the best we can to get information about their loved ones short of actual release. it's difficult to do when obviously we don't have direct communications with hamas. yes, we want as much information as we can get on all of them. we understand the extreme curiosity by their families. we share that and want to make sure we can get eyes on them and know they're okay. >> martha: in terms of efforts to rescue these american individuals, is that something that is off the table right now during this cease fire and methodical release going on? >> this process is working. we've gotten almost 60 hostages with today's release. that's impressive over four days. we want to keep that going. we're excited. the president was personally involved in getting this extension. 20 more hostages the next few days. this process is working so we're putting our efforts into that. >> martha: when the president spoke to the prime minister of qatar, is there any promise of getting any americans? >> i wouldn't get into any diplomatic discussions. we made it plain and clear we want to see the hostages home. we're glad this got extented a couple days and we'll watch it as closely as we can. >> martha: washington headline. they say the hamas attacks and israeli reactions have roiled the biden temporary like any other issue. the biden administration has become identify with a military campaign that killed 13,000 palestinians, displaced thousands of others and damaged america i've moral authority in much of the world. can you tell me anything about that inner roiling and division that is going on? we understand there were a group that wanted to speak to jake sullivan and anita dunn to express their concern about the president's israel stance. >> the president understands that there's strong feelings all across the board here on this conflict between israel and hamas. he respects that. we have listened to staff members here at the national security council and across the administration from all different communities, from the jewish community, palestinian community. we listen to everybody. they all have a view and want to hear their thoughts. the president continues to work this issue very hard. from the president's perspective and you heard him talk about this a little bit yesterday, what we've been doing is having respects. israel needs to defend itself against a truly genocidal threat that hamas poses. we're going to continue to give them the tools and the capabilities to go after that threat as well as lessons learned from our own experience in urban warfare. we're also working very, very hard as we've been talking about the last few minutes to get hostages out, americans out, 850 americans have been aable to leave thanks to our leadership and getting the humanitarian assistance in. we're producing results and urging the israelis very stridently to be as careful as they can. >> martha: is the white house okay with the plan after the next couple days for israeli to go back to its bombing campaign to eradicate hamas? is the white house on board with that? >> prime minister netanyahu made it clear they're going to resume operations. we believe hamas poses a genocidal threat to israel and they have every right to keep going after that hamas leadership. they'll keep getting our support on that. what we also said, they talked about going in to the south, south gaza next. what we've said is we don't support them doing that unless or until they have come up with a very good plan for how they're going to minimize civilian casualties. they just asked a million or so people to move south in to south gaza. now they're in south gaza. if there's a military operation, we want to make sure that they accounted for that civilian life. >> martha: put it this way. if they do that and go against white house wishes, is it on the table to say we're going to cut off the funding for israel if you don't abide by the restrictions that we think are the right course of the path to follow here? >> i'm not going to get into hypotheticals like that. we've been clear with the israels. they'll have our support after they go after this real threat. we'll continue to give them the benefit of our own perspective and experience in urban warfare that will continue as well. >> martha: so no redlines for the white house on what israel does or does don't militarily? >> i'll leave at thit the way i. we'll urge them to be careful and careful. >> martha: 74 attacks now. another one just today. you saw the attack that fell just a couple miles short of the u.s.s. mason. it's quite clear that iran sympathetic proxies, whatever you want to call it, are escalating these attacks against american and israeli interests in the region. what is our response to that and, you know what we have done so far has not worked. because it's getting more intense by the day, john. >> martha: a couple of thoughts on this, martha, if you'll indulge me. first of all, we're not sure whether it was more than one missile fired by the houthis regardless, it fell, they fell some ten miles away from the mason. so it wasn't exactly close. it's not clear that the mason was the target of the missile launches. could have been a civilian merchant level that the mason was helping at some distance away. nevertheless, i know the bigger point is, these continued attacks on our facilities in iraq and syria. we won't telegraph our punches. we sent a strong message through are retaliatory strikes of our 18 that we're going to do what we have to do to protect our troops. the mason is part of the eisenhower strike group that the president ordered in the region. we have the tools to protect our interests and we'll do that. and the message to any other actor being tehran or the houthis, we'll do what we have to do to protect ourselves. >> martha: what about a significant attack on iranian interests to send a very clear message has has been done by the trump administration and the reagan administration and it worked? >> i'm not going to telegraph punches, martha. i won't get ahead of decisions that haven't made made yet. we have the structure there. we have the ability to protect ourselves and national interests and our partners. >> martha: 74 attacks is quite a bit. whether or not it's intended for the u.s.s. mason, it's not a pretty mixture of attacks on the u.s. forces. you think the white house has any regrets about the five for five and the $6 billion that went to iran in september? just a few weeks before all of this started. >> no. we got five americans back home with their families where they belong. those decisions are tough for any commander-in-chief to make. the president will -- >> martha: you don't think i've gait iran a green light that these kind of things were not going to be pushed back on significantly? >> this isn't the first time that i ran has wrongfully detained americans and held them. we're not the first administration to do negotiations to get americans home. we've talked about the $6 billion. that money cannot be touched by the regime. it can be used for vending through approved contractors humanitarian assistance. the regime never touches that money and none of it has been touched. >> martha: john kirby, good to talk to you from the white house. let's bring in karl rove from a quick reaction to that discussion. he was a white house deputy chief of staff for george w. bush and a fox news contributor. what are you hearing in this discussion right now? >> first after all, there's a reason why they put admiral kirby out. he's the strongest spokesperson that they have. this is a tough situation. we don't -- we, the united states of america, does not control our dominate these negot negotiations. the negotiations are tweep israel, qatar and hamas. we're a participant in it a validater. but we're not the people sitting at the table making the negotiations. so we have to live with the decisions. so for example, one of the first decisions was, we're going to put the first people to be released are women and children. that means that because most of the americans are male, they won't be released early. we have to live with that. there's no good -- nobody will come out saying we're happy with the way this proceeded. hamas won't be happy, the israelis won't be happy, we won't be happy. hopefully at the end we have the americans released and hopefully at the end the carnage is constrained. admiral kirby is right. israel faces a existential genocidal threat in the form of hamas. the videos that we've seen of how they handle civilians in a brutal, vicious way is symptomatic of what israel will face unless they decimate the leadership and the military strength of hamas in the weeks ahead. >> martha: tense times for all. karl, thanks very much. sorry we're cult short. we have been following this breaking news as 11 hostages including these children are now on their way to freedom. they are headed back home including these twin 3-year-old little girls and their mom. we're live inside israel as all of this is breaking on "the story" live. veteran homeowners. are you applying for a car loan? the monthly payments can be expensive. with an affordable home loan from newday, you can pay cash and own the car or truck of your dreams. [city ambience sounds] [car screech] [car door slam] [camera shutter sfx] introducing ned's plaque psoriasis. [camera shutter sfx] he thinks his flaky, red patches are all people see. otezla is the #1 prescribed pill to treat plaque psoriasis. [ned?] it can help you get clearer skin and reduce itching and flaking. with no routine blood tests required. doctors have been prescribing it for nearly a decade. otezla is also approved to treat psoriatic arthritis. don't use otezla if you're allergic to it. serious allergic reactions can happen. otezla may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. some people taking otezla had depression, suicidal thoughts, or weight loss. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. [crowd gasp] ♪ with clearer skin, movie night is a groovy night. [ting] ♪ live in the moment. ask your doctor about otezla. hello! hello is friendly... hello is open... it's welcoming... everything we want to be when helping people find a medicare plan during the annual enrollment period. so, say hello... to hellomedicare, a one-stop shop for medicare plans, including a range of “all-in-one” medicare advantage plans... from the names you know. learn, compare, even enroll - all in one place. no matter where you are in your search - whether you're just starting out, or already have a good idea of what you want — give us a call. our hellomedicare licensed insurance agents are here to make things easy and help guide you to a plan that fits your needs. because we get it - finding the right medicare plan can be challenging. plans can differ by price... or benefits... they can even differ by where you live. that's why we're here - to put it all together... and be your go-to place for all the latest information... laid out right in front of you, in a way that's easy to understand. it all starts with a few simple questions so we can get to know you better. questions like, “do you want to keep your doctor?” and “which benefits are important to you?” then, based on your answers, we'll match you with plans from well-known names in medicare, giving you a complete picture of your best options. next, we'll help you compare benefits. compare costs. it's easy. and when you feel good about your selection... we'll sign you up. done. and. done. remember, the annual enrollment period is here... and it ends on december 7th. so whether you're looking to save money, or find better coverage... let's do this. let's go find your medicare plan. call us today and speak with one of our helpful, hellomedicare licensed insurance agents. hellomedicare. say hello to an easier way to do medicare. >> martha: okay. these are the 11 people whose lives changed dramatically today. the idf says that the release including two families, you can see the upper left hand side. the hostages are making their way to freedom. there's no americans here. alex hogan joining us live. hi, alex. >> we just got the official israeli hostages are now officially back on israeli soil. among them, there's four sets of families. one of those are the cunio family, twin games. the second family, carina and unival. she called her sister before they were taken. and her husband will stay behind, a 12-year-old and a 16-year-old were home alone when they were being kidnapped. they called their mother. all of these are from a small town, a town of about 400 had been kidnapped october 7th. martha? >> martha: another day of release and beginning the process of healing. many have left the dads left behind. thanks, alex, reporting from jerusalem. rosalyn carter lying in repose in atlanta. she passed away last week after she went in hospice care at home. she was 96. former president jimmy carter also in hospice care at home. his library says he hopes to attend this week's services. rosalyn carter's funeral is set for wednesday in the couple's hometown of plains, georgia. as we remember the former first lady of the united states. rosalynn carter. that is "the story" for this monday, november 27. welcome back, everybody. but as "the story" continues and goes on, we'll be back here with more news tomorrow at 3:00. meantime, stay tuned for "your world" which starts now. see you tomorrow. >> 11 more