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Truce between Israel and Hamas Delayed until Qatar's new announcement; Ramallah Radio Station offers Hope and Comfort for Jailed Palestinians; Hostage's Parents Speak to CNN on The Hopes of Their Son's Return; Nic Robertson Looks Back at the Early Days of the Israel-Hamas War and His Experiences from Gaza Strip. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired November 23, 2023 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world as we continue our breaking news coverage of the Israel-Hamas war. I'm Rosemary Church.

Qatar's foreign ministry says it will announce in the next few hours when the truce between Israel and Hamas will begin. A diplomatic source says it's likely to start Friday midnight local time at the earliest. The news comes after Israel said on Wednesday that the expected release of hostages and a pause in fighting with Hamas were delayed.

Both U.S. and Israeli officials pointed to logistical details for that delay. Ahead of the expected truce, Israeli forces continued ground and air operations, striking parts of northeastern and central Gaza, though Palestinians say areas further south were also hit. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed confidence the deal would soon go into effect and made clear the war against Hamas is far from over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Citizens of Israel, I'd like to be clear, the war continues. The war continues. We will continue with it until all our goals are achieved. To bring back the hostages, to demolish Hamas and ensure that The day after work, there is no source that educates terror to children and pay terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN correspondents are following all the developments. Clare Sebastian is live for us in London, and Eleni Giokos is standing by in Cairo. Good to see you both. So I want to go first to Clare in London. And Clare, hopes for the

families were raised when Israel's cabinet approved that hostage deal. But now, of course, the hostage release and temporary truce with Hamas won't happen until Friday. Talk to us about what's behind the delay and what happens next.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary, it wasn't immediately clear what exactly caused this delay, but no one who is out speaking about this is suggesting that it's an existential problem with the deal itself. They're more pointing to implementation issues, logistics. One Israeli media was reporting on Wednesday that perhaps neither Israel or Hamas had actually signed the agreement, but it's not clear how much of a difference that would make.

The White House is saying that a one-day delay was designed to minimize the possibility of something going wrong. And as you said, we're hearing from the Qatari foreign minister this morning that talks are ongoing on how to implement the deal, that they're progressing positively. They are saying that they will announce in the coming hours the timing for that truce and a diplomatic source telling CNN that the earliest would be midnight local time. So that's 5:22 p.m. on the U.S. East Coast.

So that's where we stand right now. As for what happens if and when this does come into effect, there's pause in fighting followed by hostage releases. We assume, and certainly this is what the Israeli National Security Council is saying, that it will progress along the lines of what we previously heard about the deal, that this will involve some 50 Israeli hostages, that they will be released in stages, a minimum of 10 per day, according to the Qatari side, and that in return Hamas will be able to secure the release of some 150 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails heavily focused on women and in particular male teenagers, we understand, minors, that's women and children.

They will also get more aid trucks into Gaza, a significant increase on what's currently getting in and a six-hour window each day where neither the U.S. nor Israel will fly surveillance drones over Gaza. So that's sort of the contours of this deal.

I think the question really is how far this can be pushed. You heard Prime Minister Netanyahu saying that this is really just a pause, that the war will continue. Israel's second goal, aside from getting the hostages out, is of course to completely dismantle Hamas.

And you have to assume that Hamas wants to keep at least some hostages in Gaza to provide cover for this ongoing Israeli operation. And meanwhile, we're hearing, though, from the Qatari side, from Egypt, from Jordan, that they hope this will set some kind of diplomatic template that will lead to something more sustainable, a more sustained pause in fighting, perhaps even a ceasefire. That, as we know, Israel is still ruling out. Rosemary?

[03:05:00]

CHURCH: All right, Clare Sebastian, many thanks, joining us live from London with that report.

So let's bring in CNN's Eleni Giokos now. She is in Cairo. Good to see you, Eleni. So what more are you learning about when humanitarian aid will likely resume and what's to be included in that assistance as agreed to under the deal?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now what we know from the sources on the ground at Rafah border is that there is more activity than they've seen in the past few weeks. Lots of trucks lined up, aid trucks ready and in anticipation of this four-day truce to try and get in as much aid as possible. Look, the U.N. agencies, international organizations have all reiterated this point that there is a dire need for medical supplies, for food, for water as well as fuel. 1.7 million people currently displaced.

And we've heard from these aid agencies just what people are going through, running fast out of food and water. And these stories are coming in very fast from the organizations. The Norwegian Refugee Council says that they need more than just this four-day pause. They're calling for a right-out ceasefire.

And they say that neither hostages nor access to humanitarian relief should be a bargaining chip for military negotiations. They've also reiterated the points and we've been covering these stories, Rosemary, that hospitals have run out of medical supplies, have run out of anesthesia, doctors having to take very tough decisions to embark on surgeries without any anesthesia and also amputations without anesthesia. Imagine what that's like for not only the patient but for the doctors themselves and these stories have really been -- been amplified over the past few weeks.

We also heard from the U.N.'s Martin Griffiths yesterday and he was talking about the negotiation and what it takes to get aid into Gaza. And while he says they negotiate with the Egyptians that all the agreements about fuel, the number of trucks, the opening of new crossings and safe passage, they all come out of negotiations with Israel. So we know that Israel is at the center of this in terms of allowing more aid into the Gaza Strip. So we're waiting to see what will happen at the Rafah border.

We know there are a lot of trucks, but I just want to give you a bit of a snapshot in terms of the people I have met here in Cairo. The hotel that I'm staying in is hosting dual national passport holders as well as foreigners that have just been evacuated out of Gaza.

We met one family that was talking about not having bread, not having food, not having anything available to them for such a long time that everything was scarce. They were eventually trapped at the Rafah border waiting for their names to get on the list so they could evacuate. This was a family of five, I mean with three little children and one can only imagine what they'd been through because they've just been displaced from one area to the next.

The international agencies have been very clear about just the untenable scenarios that are playing out because of the food and water situation and then fuel is another issue because that keeps generators running for the hospitals.

The U.N. has also categorically said that 68 percent of people that have died in Gaza right now are women and children. And the fact that children are stuck in the middle of this, frankly, Rosemary, on both sides has become really a symbol of the suffering that we're seeing playing out over the past few weeks.

This truce is going to be absolutely pivotal. The hope is that it can be extended to get more aid in, to get more humanitarian relief over the coming days.

CHURCH: Eleni Giokos, many thanks for that live report from Cairo. I Appreciate it.

And so the agonizing wait will continue for hundreds of families for their loved ones to come home. CNN's chief international correspondent, Clarissa Ward reports from Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even as the first batch of hostages is poised to be released, they are not backing down. Look in their eyes, this protester says. Tell them that every day you are doing everything that it takes.

For 47 days, friends, family members and supporters of the estimated 240 hostages in Gaza have demanded the Israeli government prioritize bringing them home. Here they gather in support of Hadas Kalderon, whose children, 12-year-old Erez and 16-year-old Sa'ar were taken on October 7th along with her ex-husband.

Tell me. What you're going through now, are you hopeful? Are you anxious? Are you in denial?

HADAS KALDERON, MOTHER OF HOSTAGES: All of you. I smile, I laugh, and then I cry, and then I shh.

WARD: Do you know anything? Have you heard anything? Nobody knows anything.

KALDERON: Nobody. No information. I have to pray. We have to pray.

WARD (voice-over): Kalderon is not the only parent desperately waiting and hoping for news that has yet to come.

[03:10:03]

Nine-year-old Emily Hand's father, Thomas, was initially told his daughter was killed on October 7th, only to then get the news that she may be alive and held in Gaza. I want to jump through the roof with hope, Hand told us today about the possible prospect of Emily's release, but I also have to keep a level head emotionally.

It's a challenge Kalderon is all too familiar with.

KALDERON: Every day is tough. Every day is all day is tough. I don't want to think, I don't want to feel because it's too painful. You know, when they start to ask me, like interview like you, show me the picture of your child, tell me what last thing it told you. Then it breaks my heart because the last thing it told me was, mom, be quiet. I love you. He was worried for me.

WARD: When you think of, God willing, your babies come home and are part of this release, do you worry about how they will be changed by what they've experienced?

KALDERON: They are changed. They want to be the same. They got, they've been kidnapped, brutally away from the beds, from the house, from the safe place. They kidnapped their infant in this day.

WARD (voice-over): At the Central Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, prayers for those who will come home over the next few days and a promise to keep pushing for those who will not.

Clarissa Ward, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Qatar's lead negotiator says the work as hostage mediators was extremely intensive. In an exclusive interview with CNN's Becky Anderson. The Qatari Ministry of State hailed the agreement as significant, and he offered more details about the hard-fought deal to free hostages and get humanitarian aid into Gaza.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED AL-KHULAIFI, QATARI MINISTER OF STATE: Within the four days pause, in each day there will be an obligation in each side, an obligation on the Israelis and an obligation on Hamas, making sure that they're going to fulfill those obligations in each day. So in each day we aim to have a number of releases, because the number is big. So we've managed to get the parties to agree on the releases systematically.

In other words, there will be an organized schedule allowing the releases in each day, and each what is quite familiar now with their obligations.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: Ten hostages released on day one, for example?

AL-KHULAIFI: A minimum. A minimum of ten.

ANDERSON: Who will be? released.

AL-KHULAIFI: So this agreement specifically focuses on civilian women and children in each side, in both sides. And we hope that within the four days we will be able to complete the release of women and children in both sides, moving to the safe side away from this war.

By the first hours of the agreements we will be notified of the official list of people in each day. And by having that list we will make sure that we notify either the sides, the parties, themselves, or even the countries that have their hostages in the Gaza Strip currently.

ANDERSON: Hamas has said it doesn't have all the hostages and it needs time to get around to gather information about hostages that it doesn't hold and find out where they are. Many have called that just a talking point a cynical ploy to buy time.

AL-KHULAIFI: The obligation on Hamas on the first day is very clear. They need to provide us with that list. They've been granted that period of calm, and not only the period of calm, but also preventing any military clashes, a ground invasion, air surveillance, that will provide them with the room to provide us with that commitment.

ANDERSON: You've described in the language of this deal. You've described it as a truce in the Gaza Strip. And I think that language is really interesting. The use of the term truce, this is by no means a ceasefire and the fact that this is in the Gaza Strip, the main pillar of which of course is clearly the hostage release. What happens as far as humanitarian aid is concerned? What is the commitment on both sides as far as that uptick in aid is concerned?

AL-KHULAIFI: Sure, so this agreement has two major components. The first one related to the release of the hostages and the second one is related to providing not only a quantity but also quality, a humanitarian aid and assistance as needed.

One of the most interesting components within that humanitarian aid, Becky, is the fuel. And the fuel has been a debatable issue in the early times of that conflict.

[03:15:07]

Now we've managed to secure fuel being provided for a vital infrastructure such as hospitals and others.

ANDERSON: The Israelis have been very specific. They have said this is a truce period before it starts hostilities will continue and very specifically once this pause is over the war will restart. Is that useful in negotiations, that sort of language?

AL-KHULAIFI: Our work is not done. We still going to continue to talk more to the parties, to de-escalate, to seek a longer period of the ceasefire.

ANDERSON: The Israelis are not talking about a ceasefire at this point. They have categorically ruled out a ceasefire until all hostages are released. And at present, you are not mediating any talks on the soldiers or men. being held by Hamas?

AL-KHULAIFI: Well, listen, Becky, even the temporary ceasefire was not being considered at the early times by the Israelis. So we still remain hopeful. And our effort is not going to stop at this level. Our work is not done. We're going to continue working with both sides, hoping that we can secure this bigger objective.

ANDERSON: If there are families of hostages watching this interview today, families of hostages who are young men of serving age, what is your message about the likelihood that those Israeli soldiers will be released anytime soon?

AL-KHULAIFI: So we're doing everything that we can. As soon as both parties want to keep seeking Qatar's assistance and mediating, we're going to respond positively to that request.

So we know that our mission did not finish, and our work is continuous for the better cause. And as you said, our hope is really that we see a period where we can put an end to this war and let the people leave and reduce this humanitarian suffering for the people on Gaza.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Still ahead this hour, potential freedom for hundreds of Palestinians jailed in Israel. Until they're released, a Ramallah radio station provides a lifeline. Back with that and more in just a moment.

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[03:20:00]

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CHURCH: The deal for Hamas to start releasing Israeli hostages was originally supposed to start this hour. But Israel now says it's on hold until Friday, including a four-day pause in the fighting. At least 150 Palestinians held in Israeli jails are also supposed to be freed. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says not everyone will be eligible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NETANYAHU (through translator): The agreement achieved does not include the release of murderers. and it does include the agreement of the Red Cross representative to visit the hostages and transfer of medication.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: According to a CNN count, the vast majority of Palestinians eligible for release are male teenagers aged 16 to 18. The charges against them include throwing stones, harming regional security, support for illegal terror organizations, illegal weapons charges and incitement. At least two are accused of attempted murder.

Well some Palestinians held by Israel have been in jail for years. While they wait for their possible freedom, their families are sending them messages through a Ramallah radio station. CNN's Nima Elbagir has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MURAD ABU AL SABAA, RADIO AJYAL PRESENTER (translated): We will work to extend this program for another hour.

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A lifeline, keeping some connection between families torn apart. Callers sent in voice notes to radio presenter Murad Abu Al Sabaa.

UNKNOWN (translated): When are you going to release from jail?

ELBAGIR (voice-over): Radio Ajyal has dedicated its airways for years to the families of the thousands of Palestinians desperately trying to reach out to their loved ones held in Israeli prisons.

UNKNOWN (translated): We miss you.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): The young listener's aunt, a Palestinian activist, was arrested by Israeli authorities, along with thousands of other Palestinians, after Hamas' deadly October 7th attack. The station is trying to support the families so desperately waiting for any news from inside Israel's prisons.

AL SABAA (through translator): We have three phone lines here to receive messages from families of the prisoners. Because of the volume of the calls, people weren't getting through, so we've started making promo announcements. If you can't get through, send us a voice note over WhatsApp.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): In the horrifying aftermath of the Hamas attack, Israel not only carried out mass detentions of Palestinians, but is denying prisoners all family contact. This is the only way their families can reach out.

The sheer volume of messages, evidence of the realities of imprisonment here. Israeli law allows Palestinian prisoners to be detained indefinitely, without trial or stated charge. The families don't even know whether the prisoners get to hear their messages, but that doesn't stop them from sending them.

The Israel-Hamas hostage swap exchanging 150 Israeli-held Palestinian prisoners, women and teenagers for 50 Hamas-held hostages means that for now there is some hope for both Israeli and Palestinian families.

ELBAGIR: We are going to meet a Palestinian lady who, one of her loved ones, is coming home. But as ever in this context and in this situation, it's never that simple. Families on both sides, even those who are awaiting the return of those who love, are also dealing with the reality of those who won't be coming home.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): Iman al-Barghouti's sister-in-law, Hanan, was arrested alongside her three sons. The sons remain in prison. Hanan is on the list to come home.

[03:25:04]

Iman said neither she nor Hanan is involved in the politics of this war, yet they suffer its consequences.

IMAN AL-BARGHOUTI, WIFE OF PALESTINIAN PRISONER: (inaudible) Her sons they get married, so they have kids. They are waiting to see their grandmother. You know, she has a beautiful relation with them. She loves everybody.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): In the midst of Iman's joy for Hanan, she is beginning to hope that her husband, Naila al-Bargoti, the longest serving Palestinian political prisoner, could also be released in a swap.

AL-BARGHOUTI: It is a happy day for us. We know that this is really start, because that means my husband will come. My husband, Nail, who's in prison now since 44 years when he was arrested, it was the first time in 1978.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): The Barghouti family is revered by many Palestinians deemed a threat by the state of Israel. Valuable enough to Hamas that they were included in the 2011 Israel-Hamas deal among 1,100 Palestinians for one Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, after Hamas held Shalit for five years.

Who else was swapped on that day? The man Israel says is the architect of the October 7th Hamas attack. Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar. A fact that haunts every move Israel makes as it negotiates for the release of more Hamas held hostages.

As families on both sides wait and hope.

Nima Elbagir, Ramallah, The Occupied West Bank.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everyone. An update on our breaking news. Qatar's foreign ministry says it will announce in the next few hours when the truce between Israel and Hamas will begin. A diplomatic source says it's likely to start Friday as early as midnight local time or 5:00 p.m. Eastern.

The hostage release and Israel's pause in its military campaign in Gaza were delayed on Wednesday. The White House says it's due to logistical details. Hamas is expected to release at least 50 women and children over the next few days. And Israel has agreed to free more than 150 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

While Hamas says the truce deal will also allow hundreds of trucks to bring aid into Gaza, many Palestinians are still wary of what's to come. Some say the truce will do little to make up for the damage that's already been done. And after weeks of unfathomable grief and loss, they simply want to rebuild their lives.

CNN's Nada Bashir shows us the grim reality of everyday life in Gaza. And a warning, her report contains disturbing images. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): The Gaza Strip, pounded for yet another night. In the Maghazi neighborhood in central Gaza, wounded are rushed to a nearby hospital. Children badly injured, barely breathing. Medical staff overwhelmed, struggling to cope with the mounting casualties and growing humanitarian disaster.

In the south, more unbearable grief. Bodies wrapped in white.

Members of the Calusa and Abbas families, old and young, killed in a strike on their building in Khan Younis. Their lives cut short, buried just hours after Israel's cabinet agreed to temporarily pause fighting later this week in exchange for the release of 50 hostages.

The truth will be a crucial window to get much-needed aid into Gaza. But for those who have already lost so much, the news has brought little hope.

What kind of truths are they discussing? A truth just to allow some aid in? Maysara asks. We don't want that. We will manage with bread. What we truly want is not a truth for aid. We want our homes back. We want to return to our streets.

What is the point of a truth if I can't return to my home, if I can't check on my children, my parents or our businesses? Saddam says. This truth is pointless. We've been sleeping on the streets for 45 days. We have no shelter, no home, nowhere to seek refuge.

In the south, the very place people are told to evacuate to, to seek refuge, more buildings are turned to rubble overnight. Countless graves being dug each day, the death toll now topping 12,000, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, citing data from Hamas-controlled Gaza.

Another desperate plea to God, another child killed, relatives struggling to cope. Their grief, feared to only get worse. Israel's prime minister vowing the war will continue after the truce ends. And with it, more bloodshed.

Nada Bashir, CNN, in Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joining me now is Tamara Alrifai, the Director of Strategic Communications at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. Thank you so much for joining us.

TAMARA ALRAFAI, DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS, UNRWA: Thank you Rosemary.

CHURCH: So as we await the possible resumption of humanitarian aid deliveries, as set out in this new hostage deal, what is the current situation on the ground in Gaza?

[03:34:41] ALRIFAI: It's a very, very dire situation, Rosemary. We heard through the report from Nada earlier what represents a lot of what we hear on the ground from people who lost their homes and who have been made displaced, often leaving their homes with just the clothes they have on their backs and living either in UNRWA shelters, so schools of the U.N. agency for Palestine, refugees that turned into shelters or with families or on the street with very little access to basic necessities such as food, clean drinking water or medicine.

Therefore, we as humanitarians await very, very eagerly that this humanitarian pause kicks in while we actually call for a much longer arrangement through a ceasefire, because for us, this is what would truly allow our teams to go around the entire Gaza Strip and assist people in shelters. Right now we have over one million people in our UNRWA shelters across the Strip.

CHURCH: Right, and as things stand that will be a four-day truce. It may get extended, we don't know, but once that four-day truce goes into effect as part of that hostage deal, it has been delayed until Friday. What would you expect could be achieved in that time to ensure that humanitarian aid supplies get to all those most in need at this time?

ALRIFAI: A couple of things. The most important is truly for a halt in the active war and the hostilities, meaning enough safety and security for U.N. teams to be able to go with trucks into the northern part of the Gaza Strip, which has seen the fiercest fighting and the largest damage.

We will go there. We will check in on around 60 shelters that belong to the U.N. Agency for Palestine Refugees but that we have not been able to access nor provide assistance in for, now, a few weeks. We need to be able to bring in sufficient amounts of food, clean water, medicine, and fuel to the different shelters, which also means we need many more trucks to come in through the Rafah crossing, but also other crossings when possible, because for now we have been receiving on average 50 trucks per day, which falls way below the needs every day of over a million people in our shelters.

CHURCH: And what are the main supplies that you're hoping to see? And do you expect fuel to be included as suggested in that deal? Fuel of course so very important for hospitals in Gaza.

ALRIFAI: Fuel is at the center of any humanitarian operation. Fuel is crucial as you said for hospitals for life-saving machines and incubators. It's also crucial to generate electricity from our own generators and into our shelters so people are not completely in the dark after sunset. Fuel is also essential for our trucks. It's UNRWA trucks that go to the Rafah crossing every day to bring in everything that comes in from Egypt. So it's really our trucks going around.

And fuel is also essential for water pumping and water desalination plants that give people clean water. We've already raised the alarm of a huge surge in gastric and skin diseases due to the lack of access of people to clean water. They're drinking contaminated water, leading to diarrhea and gastric diseases. And they're not able to wash themselves since we've been only giving

them very limited quantities of water for drinking and domestic use because we haven't had any fuel. So most essential is to get fuel in. And we were promised that we will get daily amounts, although half the quantity we need.

Food, medical supplies, and winter items such as jackets, warm clothes, blankets, mattresses are also extremely, extremely urgent now that the winter has kicked in.

CHURCH: Tamara Alrifai, thank you so much for joining us and for all the work that you do, I appreciate it.

ALRIFAI: Thank you.

CHURCH: An Israeli-American couple has seen a gruesome video of their son being taken hostage by Hamas. Now they talk to CNN about their hopes that he will still come back home. That's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Throughout this conflict, CNN has been in touch with an Israeli-American couple whose son was taken by Hamas. Twenty-three- year-old Hersch Goldberg-Polin was seriously wounded on October 7th before the militant group took him away.

CNN's John Berman spoke with his parents, Rachel Goldberg and John Polin, just before the Israel-Hamas deal was delayed. And he asked them if the agreement gave them hope their son would be back home soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RACHEL GOLDBERG, SON TAKEN BY HAMAS: I have nothing but hope that any deal will help lead to more deals. I'm also extremely hopeful. You know, it's all rumors until it happens, even though this rumor seems to be seemingly very accurate until I see the loved ones cross over into safe hands.

I'm not counting my chickens before they hatch, but certainly if these children that have been living in darkness and fear and trauma for 47 days are returned, I will be thrilled and extremely hopeful that more and more will be released. And obviously we won't rest until Hirsch and all 238 are home. So, you know, we're holding on to our hope.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Rachel, you met with the Pope today, and you showed him the video of Hersch being abducted with part of his arm missing. Why did you decide to show that video to the Pope, and what was his reaction?

GOLDBERG: The video itself is, I think, 50 seconds. And anyone who we have shared that with has been so moved by it. As you well know, as a journalist, I mean, a picture is worth a thousand words, a video's worth 10,000 words.

So I just thought it could be helpful for him to really understand the severity of Hersch's situation. And Hirsch is a microcosm for the larger situation of the, you know, well over 200 people who are there. There are children who are also wounded who are there. There are elderly people who are wounded who are there. We just happen to have this video thanks to your very own Anderson Cooper sharing it with us.

[03:45:07]

And therefore I felt that it was important to share it with him. And it did make an impression on him. And, you know, I felt the whole experience was such a privilege to be in his presence and to have him feel empathy and sympathy and speak with us. We were a group of 12 of the families. together there and it was a really meaningful moment for all of us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The parents of Hersch Goldberg Polin speaking to CNN's John Berman there.

Well CNN's Nic Robertson has been covering the Israel Hamas war since the beginning. Multiple iron domes at work here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Multiple iron domes were here. Multiple iron domes coming in from different directions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Coming up, Nic looks back at the terrifying first days of the conflict and the unimaginable he has witnessed since then.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: CNN's Nic Robertson has witnessed the Israel-Hamas war since it began. Now more than six weeks later, he describes the destruction in Gaza as apocalyptic.

[03:50:05]

And in southern Israel, he says the horrors of October 7th still hang in the air, where so many innocent people died. This is Nic's record of a brutal conflict that's far from over. And a word of caution, some images in his report are graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Minutes after leaving the plane in Tel Aviv.

ROBERTSON: The sirens have gone off. People are taking cover. We got off the bus. People are taking cover. And you can hear the intercept missiles banging in the air. ROBERTSON (voice-over): It's October 7th, 14 hours since Hamas' attack

began. No one knew what to expect.

A few hours later, three and a half miles from Gaza.

ROBERTSON: There's iron dome being fired up all around us right now. It's illuminating the sky here. The bangs of the iron dome intercepting the rockets that are being fired from Gaza just a couple of miles away.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The coming days reveal Hamas' horrors, more than 1,200 dead.

ROBERTSON: Look at all these shell casings that are scattered around on the ground here. This gives you an indication of the intensity of the firefight.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): More than 300 at the Nova Music Festival. A rocket shelter there, where some were mercilessly killed in cold blood, had the biggest impact.

Six weeks later, we happen to be passing, as Israel's recovery specialists clean it out.

ROBERTSON: This is bringing back a lot of painful and difficult memories. The last time I was here, six weeks ago, it was still full of human flesh and remains. And I'm looking inside, and it seems, I don't know, worse. The grenades splatter. The gunshots that are in the wall here, they're bigger, they're worse. I'm just looking at it. That night I was really emotionally beaten by what I saw here.

I don't know it's clean but I don't think I'll ever forget it and that feeling.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Equally unforgettable, the scale of suffering and death inside Gaza, an average of 2,000 people a week killed, two- thirds of them women, children and the elderly, the worst I have ever witnessed while covering a wall.

My only access to Gaza with the IDF, revealing an apocalyptic landscape, where every building appears crushed, collapsed, shot up, burnt or blown apart, nothing untouched by the war.

Destruction on a scale I've never encountered before.

ROBERTSON: More rockets coming out, more rockets coming out. Guys, more rockets coming out.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): For weeks from a balcony a mile from Gaza, witnessing the destruction, explosion by explosion, day after day. As the IDF followed political orders to destroy Hamas.

And Hamas emerging to fire rockets back.

Through these long weeks, talking to with families of hostages, hearing their pain. JONATHAN DEKEL-CHAN, FATHER OF HOSTAGE: It's excruciating. We don't

know if he's healthy or wounded. We know nothing.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): And sharing difficult moments.

With victims. returning to where Hamas attacked them.

ALIZA SAMUEL, OCTOBER 7TH SURVIVOR: They were lined up and they were. I saw one of my friends, she was begging for her life.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): So, what next? Ceasefire, hostage release, maybe. But it won't be all hostages and the hold in fighting is unlikely to last. Israel fears Hamas will exploit the cause to regroup. Hamas will do whatever it takes to survive, including not handing over all the hostages.

Israel vows to completely destroy Hamas and release the hostages. A tactic show fighting Hamas is a priority and is far from finished.

The implication judged watching the past six weeks. For some hostage families, more days and more weeks of agonizing wait for Gaza's besieged civilians continuing misery.

[03:55:05]

Gaza is still cut off from the world. The vast majority of its 2.2 million citizens displaced, crowded in the southern end of the enclave.

Humanitarian access, on a scale to match the scope of their need, is absent.

Israel vows to rout Hamas there, too. Most of Gaza's hospitals are out of action. International pressure on Israel is mounting.

ANTONIO GUTERRES, UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL: We are witnessing a killing of civilians that is unparalleled and unprecedented in any conflict since I am secretary-general.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The only concrete certainty is today, in Gaza, rebuilding what is destroyed will take years. And in Israel but no one will feel safe until Hamas is gone.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Sderot, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And just into CNN, Gaza's Ministry of Health, which is controlled by Hamas, says the director of the enclave's largest hospital, Al-Shifa, has been arrested by Israeli forces. and that other doctors were taken into custody as well. CNN cannot verify the claim and has reached out to the IDF for comment. The director was reportedly arrested while evacuating with a World Health Organization convoy. We will of course continue to track down more details on this and bring you any updates. I want to thank you for joining us here on "CNN Newsroom." I'm

Rosemary Church. Our breaking news coverage of the Israel-Hamas war continues with Max Foster in London after a short break.

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