the resuchks of war and families rejoice over being reunited. this morning, i'll speak to a top red cross official about the hostage releases along with prime minister netanyahu's closest advisor. and we're expecting law enforcement officials in vermont to give details on the arrest of a suspect in connection to the weekend shooting of three college students of palestinian descent visiting one of their grandmothers during the break. >> no person and no community in this country should have to live in fear of hate fueled violence. fulfilling that promise motivates us every day. >> good day, everyone. 11 more hostages could be released today according to egypt. a truce in the fighting will be extending possibly for two more days creating new hope for the families of hostages still not released and for gaza residents hoping for more. new photos of the 4-year-old, abigail, the israeli american girl released sunday whose parents were killed by hamas on october 7th. she pictured here with her aunt and uncle at the israeli children's hospital. over the weekend, the emotional reunion of the 9-year-old running into his father's arms. and mother taken hostage. sharon reunited with her son. sn those pictures are just so wonderful. the desperate father finally reunited with his wife and daughter. their family members speak of the road to recovery. >> they're all together now. it's so important, but as you know, my uncle's partner, grandmother and mom, she was brutally murdered in front of their eyes. so, it's very hard to cope. >> joining me now is nbc news chief foreign correspondent, richard engel. what is the latest on the talks about the latest batch of hostages? will we see more released today? are there more hang ups as this were on saturday? >> well, it is starting to get late in the evening here, so it looks like there might be a delay but as you know watching this process, these can go right down to the wire. so it is not off as far as i know for the day. we still could see a hostages released today although with every hour that passes, it seems less and less likely, but the big news is that and taking some of the pressure off of the timing, is that according to hamas, white house, and arab diplomats, multiple arab diplomats, the two sides have agreed to at least a two-day extension according to hamas under the same terms as the previous agreement. the previous agreement, the agreement now being extended, is is that hamas releases hostages, women and children, and that the israelis release minors from an israeli jail at a ratio of three to one. they're being facilitated by the red cross. the initial number, the parameters of the deal, were to get to 50 israelis in the first four days, which are expiring right now, and 150 palestinians. we don't know how many more potentially could be released over the next two days, if in fact it is only a two-day extension. perhaps it goes beyond two days, but so far, we are about at that number with 50 and 150 palestinians and now if there are two-day extension, that obviously creates opportunity for more hostages to be released. and it creates the potential opportunity for these talks to go elsewhere. to create a different kind of momentum. and that's certainly something that the mediators are hoping for. they hope that this these talks, which are strictly on the hostages now can develop into a more lasting cease fire. a more lasting agreement that if not -- but at least gets us out of this current cycle and back to a long-term negotiating table. >> and richard, you also spoke to the family of 4-year-old abigail today. tell us more about that. >> reporter: so, abigail was four years old. had her 4th birthday in gaza in hamas captivity. an israeli american. and was released and like many of these israeli hostages, they're being released to hospitals. they're being released to hospitals for a variety of reasons. one, they have, they want medical support. the israelis clearly want to make sure the people are in good shape and not all of the hostages are in great shape. some have lost weight. all of them are traumatized from what they saw during the initial october 7th attack and then 50 days more or less depending on the hostage, of captivity. so, a 4-year-old girl, her case is even more extreme because both of her parents were killed. so she is free, but she is now an orphan. the family is now trying to pull together to try to figure out what arrangements can be made. who will support her. how do you reput this family back together. it's not just her. we spoke with another family earlier today of another young girl, a 9-year-old. excuse me, a 13-year-old. and the reason i know that she is 13 is that today is her 13th birthday so the family is organizing a small party at the hospital, bringing some of a small group of an inner circle friend, relatives. they don't want to overwhelm her. but her mother isn't there. her mother is still in gaza as a hostage. so, you're having these family reunions to call them bittersweet is a gross understatement. yes, there's happiness because they are out of gaza and they are out of immediate danger being held by angry, dangerous gunmen, but they're being brought to hospitals. they're going to need a tremendous amount of some physical care and psychological care and their relatives, sometimes close relatives like this girl's mother, are either still in gaza or with the case of this 4-year-old girl, they never made it to gaza because they were killed during the initial attack. >> richard, i know you'll be back with us later. just think of how they even told abigail about her parents. she didn't even know. richard, thank you so much. and joining us now is jason, the spokesman for international committee of the red cross which has been so critical in getting aid in and in bringing the hostages out. jason, first of all, has the red cross been able to visit the other hostages as it's required of international law and was supposed to be part of this agreement? >> that's an important issue for the families. we know this. we know that they are going through emotional anguish. they, being separated from their family, knowing they're getting help. and also there's anguish over the fact that we haven't been able to visit them. the answer to your question is no, unfortunately, we haven't been able to do these visits. we've been trying. we've been insisting with hamas that we be allowed to visit, but the agreement to allow us to safely visit, but also safely for those hostages, that's not in place yet. >> there are published reports that as many as 40 hostages may not be under hamas control and they may not know where they are. they might be controlled by criminal gangs or islamic jihad, other groups. >> well, what i can say about that is that we are in direct contact with anyone who we think might be holding hostages. who might have influence to be able to improve their situation. whether it's in person visits, deliveries of medication, or releases directly. so i don't have a breakdown of who is holding whom. i do know that our very experienced leadership both in israel and in gaza are on the phone. we're visiting hamas leadership in qatar, directly. trying to learn this information, but i will also say that once we learn it, we wouldn't necessarily talk about it publicly. our only goal would be to try to advance the humanitarian situation for those people. >> has the aid delivery during this pause and now we hear there could be a few more days of the pause, have the aid deliveries increased appreciably because there was the disconnect about whether they were getting past the israeli lines to the north. >> they've increased and then we could have different gradations of subjective opinion on appreciably or not. they've increased and that's good news. the bottom line is even with a small increase, the needs are so overwhelming. we've seen thousands of people during this cease fire move from the north to the south. they felt like they had enough physical safety to be able to do that. then to go to a location in gaza where the israeli authorities have suggested that they go. but that's created more humanitarian needs because you have even more people out in the open at a hospital where we have a red cross surgical team, they saw an influx of 800 patients yesterday. that's just unimaginable. there's too much medical need there. the gazan doctors who are there can't help everyone who needs it right away. and one small detail. and it's a sad detail, but they're seeing a lot of open wounds that haven't been treated. should have been treated days ago but there's just not enough medical assistance to be able to get to everyone who needs it. >> and just finally, yes or no. do you think there will be more hostages today? have you gotten the alert to pick them up? >> i wish i could give you a yes or no. the answer is i don't know. i have no indications that it's not going to happen tonight. i can say that. >> it's so helpful. jason, thank you for you and all of your teams, what they're doing. obviously so critical. and we're getting new detail about a 48-year-old suspect being held in vermont over a possible hate crime of three college students of possible descent. the men were speaking arabic. two were wearing traditional palestinian scarves when the gunman opened fire reportedly without saying a word. we're expecting a press conference at any moment from burlington, vermont. now, stephanie gosk and ken dilanian. ken, first to you. it's being investigated as a possible hate crime. what are the police and fbi saying? >> jason eaton is being charged with three counts of attempted murder and a court document said one victim was hit and a bullet lodged in his spine and another in the chest. the just released affidavit said when the accused shooter answered the door on sunday afternoon in burlington, he allegedly told an atf special agent i've been waited for you then asked for a lawyer. the police seized three shotguns and also a pistol they believe was used in the shooting along with a backpack and hard drives. garland said the fbi and atf are investigating whether or not this was a hate crime. he said the justice department is remaining vigilant. >> we're going to get back to you and to stephanie because john kirby is briefing at the white house. >> israel time, this humanitarian pause has already brought a halt to the fighting together with the surge of humanitarian assistance. now, in order to extend the pause, hamas has committed to releasing another 20 women and children over the next two days. we would have of course hope to see the pause extended further and that will depend upon hamas continuing to release hostages. the president has been deeply engaged on this process throughout the thanksgiving weekend. he spoke with amir qatar and yesterday, we spoke with prime minister netanyahu to work an extension of the pause. he was briefed this morning by jake sullivan on the ongoing talks to extend the pause. he and his entire national security team will obviously stay engaged on this other the coming days as we work to implement this extension of the original agreement as well as efforts to extend the pause even from there. a quick update on the figures as of the morning of november 26th. 200 trucks to the rafah crossing and supplies were off loaded at the receptions point in gaza making it the biggest humanitarian convoy received since the 7th of october. this brings the total number of trucks of aid and assistance including fuel to over 2,000 since the 21st of october. our team has prioritized getting this much needed relief into gaza to alleviate the suffering of palestinian civilians there. of course, most of them have nothing to do with hamas and to date, we have assisted over 840 americans and their families who have departed and sought the support of our team on the ground in egypt. with that, questions. >> thank you. two things. did the president call conditionally for israel a worthwhile thought. is he actually considering conditioning aid or not? >> what he also said right after acknowledging that was a worthwhile thought was that the approach he has chosen to take has produced results and outcomes. many of them i just walked you through in my opening statement. so the approach we're taking with israel and quite frankly with our partners in the region is working. it's getting aid in, it's getting a pause in the fighting, getting hostages and americans out. we continue to urge and will continue to urge the israelis as they conduct military operations to do so with the utmost care for innocent civilian life. >> democrats in the party saying we need to start conditioning aid going forward. what would he say? >> i think he would say what he said yesterday when he got asked this question. thest a worthwhile thought but the approach i'm taking now the working. the approach we're taking now is working. >> increasing dangers to military personnel in the gulf. i know you outlined with a series of appearances what happened, but are we to continue seeing this sort of let me put it this way. is that strategy of dealing with it as it happens going to continue to be the strategy? some say there should perhaps be a more robust response to these ongoing attacks. whether it's from iranian-backed militias in syria or iraq, the houthis. is there any thought of changing that? >> i don't think we're going to get in the business of telegraphing our punches, ed. we've responded forcefully against the threats in iraq and syria and now our forces in the gulf region. golf of oman and adan. we'll continue to do that. >> is striking in yemen still an option? >> again, i'm not going to telegraph punches. we will take the steps appropriate to protect our troops and forces in the middle east region. i would add that the mason is attached to the u.s.s. eisenhower strike group which the president dispatched to the region specifically to address the increase in the tensions. >> any possibility that americans will be among the 20 released? >> we hope so. we're going to watch this very, very closely. we're hoping that another batch of hostages gets released today as part of the fourth and final day of the original agreement. we're going to be watching closely to see if any americans are in that group. as it has come out over the last three days, we don't really know until you get into the end game who's going to be on that list then even then, you've got to watch closely seeing who's on the list is folks that actually came out. so we're watching and hoping. >> you spoke about the president's conversation at a critical moment to break that impasse. >> it came down to, over the weekend, it was more about the list and who was on it and i don't want to get into more detail than that. it's a similar issue than what we faced today. the reason why there's been a delay is because there was a difference of a view if you might, over the list, and the fact that mothers were not originally going to be able to come out with their children. that's been resolved. so it really had to do with the who. >> very quickly. the new leader of argentina says he's coming to the u.s. also to d.c. any meetings scheduled with officials while he's here? >> yes, president-elect will be coming to washington, d.c. largely to meet with the imf and world bank over their fiscal and economic issues. but while he's here in town, he'll have a chance to meet with some national security council folks including jake sullivan. the president will be on travel in the middle of the week. >> thank you. of the many americans being held, do you have any more clarity on whether they're being held by hamas or another terrorist group? >> no. >> you've been clear that a broader cease fire would benefit hamas. sullivan was clear saying that -- has been able to gain some benefit. how concerned are you that the longer this truce lasts, now six days, that hamas will benefit? >> it's a real risk. you have to expect a group like hamas, a terrorist group, which clearly doesn't abide by laws of war, will try to take advantage of any pause in fighting for their own benefit. so we're watching that closely as well as our israeli counterparts. you can bet they're watching that closely. but, and i don't want to speak for the israelis, but this is a calculated risk that prime minister netanyahu is willing to take in order to get those hostages out. it's a balance. as you've also heard the israelis say, once the pauses are over, they intend to go right back at military operations. >> when you say hamas is able to get benefit -- >> and back to israel right now and joining us is ambassador mark rega, the top adviser to netanyahu. former israeli ambassador to the u.k. mark, can you tell us has israel agreed to extend this pause? is this a three-way agreement we know about from the u.s. and hamas? >> already last night here in israel, the prime minister in a statement said publicly that we would be willing to extend this humanitarian pause for additional days on the condition that we see ten israeli hostages, more women and children, released for each day. now that's been the israeli position all along and if hamas has agreed to that, that's a good thing, but having said that, we are still waiting for the conclusion of the current agreement over the four days until that last group, that fourth and final group in the original agreement steps on israeli soil sometime tonight. we can put our cart before the horse. we want to see the original four-day agreement fully implemented and then we can maybe talk more publicly about an extension. >> do you know more about where some other dozens of hostages may be? there are reports that as many as 40 may not be in hamas hands. they might be with the palestinian islamic jihad. they might be with criminal gangs. what that means in gaza. >> so, the first point i make here is we're not going to let hamas subcontract out a responsibility. they said that they needed this time-out, this cessation of hostilities, the humanitarian pause, because that allows them to come out of their tunnels, bunkers, and search for and find all the hostages. now, unfortunately, they run the gaza strip. that will change in the future but for the moment, they run the gaza strip. and they are responsible for all the hostages. and they can say oh, we don't have this person or that person. we are expecting them every day of an extension, ten hostages and according to the understandings reached, as you know, president biden played a vital role. his hands on diplomacy helped facilitate the agreement and when problems arose, hwas also there pushing forward, making this deal happen. but once again, it's clearly understood hamas for every additional day, as understandings were reached, must release another ten women and children. >> you have a list from hamas of today. do we know whether the mother of some of the children who came out yesterday or the day before is going to be included? the israeli mom. what do you know about anybody coming out today and when? >> i apologize, but i'm forbidden to talk about the contents of the list. i can say the following. when you release a young infant without their mother, that is surely a sign of depravity. of inhumanity. and i think this is another example, one of many, of who we're up against. these hamas terrorists, these killers, these murderers, to deliberately separate a young child from a parent is a very terrible, terrible thing and yet they seem to do so, unfortunately, with relish sometimes. we received yesterday the american citizen, a 4-year-old. abigail. she was kidnapped when she was three. she had four 4th birthday in captivity. unfortunately, probably wasn't much of a celebration for her. her two parents were murdered by hamas on october 7th. she has two siblings, a six and a 9-year-old, who hid in the closet and survived. so we've got three orphans. one who's returned from captivity. just look at that family and you understand what hamas is all about. these are brutal killers. that's why these, these attempts to work with hamas to get our people out are never easy. it's always like pulling teeth because we're dealing with ruthless, fanatical killers. >> let me ask you, also. there's been a terrible shooting in burlington, vermont. very safe part of america. rural america. of three young men, college students here, palestinian descent. is there anything israel can do or is doing to help some of their parents get from the west bank to the u.s.? are there any legal impediments? i don't believe they can, under your laws, come, but is there anything -- >> i'm sure, i'm sure we will fully cooperate with any requests that come from washington on these issues and humanitarian issues. we are very forthcoming. >> thank you very much, mark. we appreciate your time today. >> thank you very much. and speaking of that horrible, horrific and unprovoked apparently according to the mayor of burlington, vermont, that's the description of the weekend shooting of three college students of palestinian descent visiting a grandmother of one of them in burlington. the very latest on the investigation coming up next. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. 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(inspirational music) the saturday evening shooting of three young palestinian students visiting burlington on their holiday break was one of the most shocking and disturbing events in this city's history. this horrific attack was -- of this welcoming, inclusive community. i hope that burlington's palestinian, arab, and muslim communities see in today's prompt arrest, the city's commitment to justice and to keeping all members of our community safe. >> that was the mayor of burlington, vermont. officials there briefing on the shooting of the three students in vermont over the weekend. back with us now and joining me is nbc's stephanie gosk from burlington, vermont. beautiful burlington on the shores of lake champlain. nbc news justice correspondent, ken dilanian. stephanie, what have you learned frd the press conference so far about the three mens' injuries? i know one was previously injured according to his mom. a bullet lodged in his spine. tell us what you're learning today. >> our team in the west bank had an opportunity to sit down and talk to his mother and father. they're in ramalah. he was going to school here in the u.s. they tell us he has a bullet still lodged in his spinal cord. they fear he could be paralyzed for life although they are holding out hope that may not be the case. they have been speaking to him and that he is actually in the same hospital room as one of his friends who was shot in the chest. now, the third young man was released from the hospital. these kids in their 20s were on their thanksgiving break from three different schools here in the u.s. they were walking down the street here in burlington saturday evening in what they described in an affidavit to police is that a man came running out of a house with his gun. he was wearing a hoodie. didn't say anything to them. and opened fire. now, obviously, the mother and father in ramalah are distraught. the father saying that he had sent his son to school here hoping he would be safe in the u.s., thinking burlington would be safe. the young man's grandmother lives here. he's been coming here since he was eight years old. he is familiar with his neighborhood and today, they're dealing with the reality that he was not safe. although there have not been hate crime charges in this case, ceaiy that's what's being investigated. that's why federal officials are on the ground here, called in to see if it was a hate crime and you could have superseding charges at some point potentially. >> let's listen for a moment because the uncle of one of the students is speaking at the news conference. the kids were staying with him. >> with them almost constantly since saturday evening. i've been listening to them talk to one another and try to process the events and i'm blown away by their resilience. by their good humor in the face of these difficult times and i want to extend gratitude on behalf of the families to the leadership of the chief and work of the burlington police department. the work of federal agencies that are on the ground to merot and his team. i moved here 15 years ago and i never imagined that this sort of thing could happen and my sister vesn the occupied west bank and people often ask me aren't you worried about your sister? aren't you worried about your nephews and your niece? and the reality is as difficult as their life is, they are surrounded by incredible sense of community and tragic irony is not even the right phrase, but to have them come stay with me for thanksgiving and have something like this happens speaks to the level of civic vitriol. speaks to the level of hatred that exists in some corners of this country. it speaks to a sickness of gun violence that exists in this country. and i'm proud of even though this is devastating that this happened in this community, i'm really proud and grateful to the community that is here and has rallied around our family and these boys. i want to finally say thank you to the staff at uvn medical center. the doctors and nurses and staff have been so kind and committed to the well-being of these young n. i'm grateful to them ass the families and uncle of canaan just flew in from california and i haven't had a chance to say hello. >> hello. i don't know if i have the same words that you have prepared but thank you for that. he speaks for the whole family. for all three of the families involved, i'm still processing everything. i just got here from california and walked right in as you saw. we consider ourselves very lucky at this point as far as the family is concerned. not so with others. we're really praying for them and we're still in shock over this. and as you stated, hgrew up in the west bank and we always thought that could be more of a risk in terms of his safety. and sending him here would be a, you know, the right decision. we feel somehow betrayed in that decision here and you know, we're just trying to come to terms with everything. at this point, i don't have much else to add. i think rich did a great job. thank you. >> that's heartbreaking on so many different levels, stephanie. wanted to play an interview with elizabeth price, the mother. he goes to brown university. the others go to haberford and trinity. trinity in connecticut. listen to what the mom said to i believe erin mcloughlin today in the west bank. >> i feel empty inside. you know. just this knowledge that there was something that happened to my son that i can't, i mean, he's my baby. he's taller than i am and has this long hair and really talks to me because he's always busy. this golden haired baby. just the fact this is where he's ended up. his lanky body is broken. there's no reason he should have been targeted in this way. >> stephanie gosk, you know, these boys knew each other from high school from a quaker friends school in ramalah. it's a wonderful community interrupted by all kinds of other, you know, fights. and interruptions, but there's a community there. and look at what happened to them in one of the safest cities in the u.s. >> you know, you heard in that press conference in the mayor and the police chief that law enforcement in the city rallied to find this suspect and arrest him and that the community is coming together. since the war broke out between israel and hamas, we have been covering the various protests that have broken out. flash points at college campuses, hatred back and forth between targeting muslims, targeting jewish people, and the fear all along is that this hatred would become violent and we have seen that happen in various circumstances. you'll remember the case of this 6-year-old muslim boy who was stabbed to death allegedly by the landlord of his apartment building and now you have these three young men as you say, who grew up together, who were attending some of the best schools this country has to offer. and then caught up in this violence. again, there have not been hate charges in this case, but that is certainly what they are looking into and what a lot of people are feeling is the case at this point, andrea. >> thank you so much. and ken, just jump in here in terms of what the attorney general said today and whether you think hate crimes will likely be filed, which increases the penalty if there is a conviction, appreciably. >> yeah, he's already facing life in prison on state attempted murder charges and the court documents released today show some very incriminating evidence but they don't have any statements that would go to motive. that's what the fbi and atf are investigating. they need evidence of bias here to make these charges but attorney general garland felt compelled to speak out about this because he said it fits into a larger context that is really alarming law enforcement in this country. >> all of us have also seen a sharp increase in the volume and frequency of threats against jewish, muslim, and arab communities across our country since october seven. there is understandable fear in communities across the country. i have reiterated the justice department has no higher priority than protecting the safety and civil rights of everyone in this country. >> and that's what's so difficult about these cases. the threats are everywhere. as you've been saying, burlington, vermont, one of the most peaceful places in the united states but the message is there are angry and unbalanced people everywhere and we are in a heightened state of threat right now. >> and the tempo online is contributing a lot to the possible acting out of aggression and violence. ken, thank you. joining us now from the council of american islamic relations and the former d.c. chief of homeland security and intelligence. from your perspective, your reaction to this horrendous act of violence. the possibility that hisham may not walk again according to his mother. >> it's devastating and heartbreaking to see that a senseless act of violence like this has change it had course of the lives of three young, bright, vibrant, palestinian americans who were simply pursuing a better education for themselves. it doesn't surprise us considering that in this political climate, we are seeing unprecedented hate targeting muslim, arab americans. our data shows there's been a 215% increase as of october 7th impacting our communities. >> seems to be what chris wray was warning about when he was testifying before congress recently. individuals carrying out attacks against americans going about their daily lives. >> absolutely. the stats we just heard, tracking an increase of 400% against the jewish community in houses of worship. let's be honest. this is the, this plays directly into the hands of hamas. even though the conflict is over 6,000 miles away, they want nothing more than to have us tear ourselves apart. it's pretty well-known how divisive our politics has been for the last few years with the rise of the violent right and radicalization. so while we don't know that's the cause of this incident that happened in vermont, you know, it's very concerning. i do want to just take a moment now because you know, there are three young men who were in the hospital now who may be watching this show, to let them know this is not what america stands for. we pray for their speedy recovery. and we have to get to the bottom of what's going on right now. >> and i just want to also point out, it's very well said. all three students attended that american friends school in ramalah and here's how the school director described them and the situation. >> we are afraid that it is most likely a crime against palestinians. they're amazing students and we're proud of them and they were there for the thanksgiving holiday, spending it at the grandmother's. >> here, you've got students studying at a quaker school in ramalah. it's such an all american story. coming to the united states for a better college education. >> unfortunately, we've been seeing the consistent dehumanization of palestinians abroad and also within our own country that is fuelling hate violence. obviously, we don't know the motive miss. my organization is not working directly with the families in this case, but we're giving an award and calling on elected officials at every level of the government to speak out strongly against the hate bias. it's unacceptable that at every level of the government, there have been one sided statements that have disproportionately expressed support for other communities at the expense of muslim, arab, and palestinian communities. and unfortunately, that is fuelling in large part the sentiment that's emboldening the hate bias we're seeing within our communities. we see cases of students afraid for their safety on college campuses. employees concerned about harassment, even losing their jobs, for expressing solidarity and that's not acceptable. we need every elected official to speak out loudly and forcefully and to call for an end to this senseless violence. >> understood. we need to hear them speaking out about violence against all groups. all ethnic groups including the extraordinary rise in antisemitism. thank you very much. and diplomacy and deadlines. next, the latest on the expected hostage release today. in fact, we have a quick update coming up for you on that. this is andrea mitchell report on msnbc. port rs on msnbc uiggly? perfect! so now, do you have a driver's license? oh. what did you get us? with the click of a pen, you can a new volkswagen at the sign, then drive event. hurry in to lease a new 2023 all-electric id.4 for zero down, zero deposit, zero first month's payment, and zero due at signing. limited inventory available. the best advice i ever got was to invest with vanguard for my retirement. the second best? stay healthy enough to enjoy it. so i started preparing physically and financially. then you came along and made every mile worth it. hi mom. at vanguard you're more than just an investor, you're an owner. helping you prepare for today's longer retirement. that's the value of ownership. we have just learned from egypt's chairman of state information service that 11 israelis and 33 palestinians will be exchanged today and disagreements about implementing the fourth and what was to be the final phase have been overcome and you heard from john kirby earlier about the pause and conditional hostage releases will be scheduled for two more days. two more days, until thursday israeli time, so 20 more hostages will be released according to the white house. joining us now is retired four star us navy admiral who served as supreme allied commander of nato and ambassador ross, distinguished fellow at the washington institute. ambassador ross, take us behind the scenes. how do you think this extension was reached and what does it tell you about the chances that if and when the pause is over, that perhaps the israeli attacks will be more tailored to u.s. requests to be less precise. >> that's a very good question. part of the question, i think you have egypt, qatar working with the united states and obviously t u.s. is working closely with the israelis. you have a reality that hamas has interest all along in trying to extend this truce as much it could. at a minimum, for hamas, it gives it some time to reduces the kind of military pressure they were under. it basically gives them a chance to kind of reposition but with some of their forces. probably move around some of their leaders and fighters who they've feared the israelis might have known where they were. so they have a stake in extending this. i would say they have a stake in extending it farther. the israelis have a stake because there's a genuine belief, a consensus, that their first obligation is to get as many of the hostages out as they can. you have a convergence of interests which helps explain not only the pause to begin with, but now the extension. i wouldn't dismiss the possibility you could see a further extension beyond that. there will be, i think, at some point, an end to this. because the israelis have an objective, which is that basically hamas cannot continue to be in control of gaza because if it is, we'll see this all over again. and israelis are not going to live that way. having said what i just said, they do face a daunting task because about 2 million palestinians are down there. they're going to have to go after the hamas leadership, which probably -- going to have to do this in a way that i think is more tailored than what we saw in gaza city jabalya. i think that is in part a function of their conversations with us. it is partly also a function, they're recognizing they need the u.s. to continue to create the time and space for them to get this side of this operation -- >> admiral, let me ask you about just the relationship right now between what israel was doing initially. using bunker buster bombs in refugee camps for instance. prime minister netanyahu said in a video message sunday that he told president biden at the end of the pause, whenever that happen, we will return with full force to achieve our goals. do you expect that israel will better target their military approach agreeing to american and international expectations? >> yes, i do. you know, there's a military war going on. there's also an information war going on. israel is winning the military war and losing the information war. the narrative has turned decidedly against israel. therefore, and they are smart. they understand this. narrative decidedly against israel. they are smart and they understand this. at this stage they're going to need to be -- your word, and a good one -- more precise. we talk a lot about prescription-guided munitions, prescription-guided bombs, munitions, et cetera. the most precise thing on a battlefield is a precise infantry soldier. you'll see idf using more foot soldiers, more targeted means i think in the north and then they'll have to move that campaign to the south, all the while being mindful of how they're losing this information war. they've got a big task ahead of them. i'll conclude with this. their principle physical military objective is going to be to get rid of those tunnels. that's been a major source of challenge for them. in addition they'll want to get the hostages and eliminate as much of the leadership of hamas as they can. make no mistake, israelis are not going to stop. they'll be back. >> let me just follow up on that. if the pause ends and the fighting resumes before all the hostages are out, how do you go after the tunnels when we know for sure from the returning hostages they've been staying in tunnels? >> the short answer is you don't until you get to the point where you can go in with special forces. maybe you're sending unmanned objects, vehicles into those tunnels. you've got to find and fix those hostages before you flood them, bomb them, destroy them. it is an extremely delicate task. i agree with the ambassador, i think it's very likely that we'll see the pause continue. more hostages will come out. everyone will reassess. this is going to be a very moving target of a discussion in the weeks ahead. >> thank you so much, admiral stavridis and ambassador ross, thanks to both of you. the joy and the pain amid celebrations for those released by hamas. anxious family members still remain on edge waiting for those who are still being held. that's next on "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. on "andr reports" only on msnbc taking charge of your health. so every day, you can say, ♪ youuu did it! ♪ with centrum silver. ah, these bills are crazy. she has no idea she's sitting on a goldmine. well she doesn't know that if she owns a life insurance policy of $100,000 or more she can sell all or part of it to coventry for cash. even a term policy. even a term policy? even a term policy! find out if you're sitting on a goldmine. call coventry direct today at the number on your screen, or visit coventrydirect.com. theo's nose was cause for alarm, so dad brought puffs plus lotion to save it from harm. puffs has 50% more lotion and brings soothing relief. don't get burned by winter nose. a nose in need deserves puffs indeed. america's #1 lotion tissue. joining us is tel aviv bureau chief martin fletcher. eight of his family members have been released since the start of the war including a 3-year-old and 8-year-old this weekend. the father still being held. martin, tell us how you and your family can balance the joy of having some of your family members back home but also the fact that their dad is being held. andrea, absolutely. it's a personal and professional thing for me. for the family, at what point do you start celebrating when you know three of your family were killed and now suddenly we've got the first two hostages released, the americans were from our family. another six of seven freed on saturday. but the father, tal, is still held hostage. what do you do? do you celebrate? it's this roller coaster of emotions. this man nick, depressive state that israel is in at the 340e89. bouncing back and forth between joy and sorrow. i think we're pretty clear that tal, who i believe is 38 years old, probably falls into the category of military-age men that hamas says they're not going to be freeing, certainly in the knee fu future. hamas has said they will not release soldiers, men and women, and men of military age, and that includes tal. of course everybody is celebrating, especially the fact that we've got thehildren back. now it's a matter of dealing with the traumas and the physical issues. apparently there's no serious physical issues among the people released from our family. psychologically a lot of work to be done. >> how are the children in particular? >> well, as far as i know, the pictures of them show them smiling and hugging their family members. amazingly, almost all the family, apart from the three we new were killed, have come back save and well from their captivity. the children are fine. i haven't spoken directly with the hostages, and i'll tell you why, andrea. on the one hand there's a professional journalistic need, if you like, to find out what is going on. is is news, but it's also family and also damaged people. so i don't t pick up the phone and jtet in the way. they're keeping to themselves at the moment in the hospital. the next thing they'll have to work out is at what point can they go home? they come from the border with gaza, which has been not completely, totally destroyed, but large parts of it have been destroyed and burnt. other members of their own kibbutz are still held hostage. nobody knows what to do. i don't think israelis have been through this before to this extent. we're making it up as we go. if you ask me how the children are, i haven't asked because i don't want to complicate their issues, you know. that's clouds we've seen in the west bank, celebrating the release of the palestinian. several thousands have been arrested since october 7th, thousands more being held without charges under security arrangements in israel where you don't have to even know why you're being held. >> absolutely. the israelis presumably are arresting people with good reason. the release of the women and the teenagers on the west bank is being celebrated, a victory picture, if you like, for hamas. israel's image ot the moment is hostages coming home safely and joy being expressed by their families at their safe return. the images we're seeing from the west bank are quite different. it's a celebration, wild celebrations. this is the victory images that hamas has been looking for. the fact that hamas has been able to get palestinian prisoners fre from israeli jails is a huge triumph for hamas among the palestinian people. of course the palestinian people want their state. what they want in the immediate short term is the release of their prisoners from the israeli jail. this has always been the goal, to get the prisoners release. hamas has been able to do it, in the process of doing it now. this is a great success for hamas, increases their popularity in the west bank. the polls show support for hamas right now. there's horror on what hamas did but glee in what hamas is achieving in the negotiations with israel. >> martin fletcher, thank you so much. that does it for us, for "andrea mitchell reports." "chris jansing reports" starts right now. good day. i'm chris