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17 Hostages Freed by Hamas on Day Three of Temporary Truce; 39 Palestinian Teens Released from Israel Prisons; Palestinian-American U.N. Aid Official Loses Family to War; 3 Palestinian Students Shot in Vermont; Holiday Spirit Endures Even as Conflict Rages. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired November 27, 2023 - 00:00   ET

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

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company. It is 7 a.m. in the morning in Gaza, where the fourth day of a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas is now underway.

[00:00:44]

And in the hours ahead, we're expecting the release of more hostages.

Monday is said to be the final day of this agreement, but Hamas says it wants to extend the pause in the fighting beyond the original four- day deal. A source telling CNN, Israel's war cabinet also discussed that possibility Sunday night.

Day three of the truce saw the release of 17 hostages, including Israelis and foreign nationals. The group includes mothers and children, and raged in age from 84 to 4 years old, the youngest being Israeli-American Abigail Edan, marking the first successful release of an American hostage since the start of the truce.

As part of the deal, an additional 39 Palestinian prisoners and detainees were released from Israeli jails on Sunday. All were males, 18 years old and younger, the youngest 14.

For some Israeli families, a nightmare that began more than seven weeks ago has finally come to an end.

CNN's Matthew Chance with more from Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They arrived by helicopter to the safety of an Israeli children's hospital near Tel Aviv. Their 51-day nightmare as hostages in Gaza, at an end.

Just hours earlier, they were released to the Red Cross, Hamas posting this highly-choreographed video, its audio removed, apparently showing Palestinians in Gaza City, which Israel has relentlessly pounded, cheering as hostages are handed over, including the U.S.-Israeli toddler Abigail Edan, who turned four just days ago in captivity.

Her parents were killed by Hamas. Her relatives say Abigail doesn't know she's returning home an orphan.

NOA NAFTALI, COUSIN OF FORMER HAMAS HOSTAGE ABIGAIL EDAN: Her brother and her sister are -- have survived. They hid in the closet for 14 hours, after watching their parents murdered, thinking that Abigail was murdered, too. They're now with their grandparents, and their aunts and uncles, who lived with him on the kibbutz. They have a wonderful extended family. And, we are all waiting for Abigail to come home.

CHANCE (voice-over): This was the horrific aftermath of the Hamas rampage through Kafar Azah, one of the Israeli communities near Gaza, where so many were slaughtered or abducted on October the 7th.

Family members say Abigail was in her father's arms when he was gunned down. And she fled to her neighbors, the Brodutch family.

CHANCE: How old?

AVICHAI BRODUTCH, HUSBAND AND FATHER OF FORMER HAMAS HOSTAGES: He's four and a half.

CHANCE (voice-over): Only to be abducted, and now released, along with them. From the start of this ordeal, Avichai Brodutch told me he's kept faith.

BRODUTCH: I always have hope with me, and you know, my beliefs -- I believe that they are going to be fine. You know, these guys that took them, I know they're religious. I know they're Muslim. So, I've got this really great hope that they are, you know, treating them well, feeding them and letting them move around a bit. Letting them play some soccer.

CHANCE (voice-over): Now also released, 9-year-old Tal Goldstein- Almog, seen here before he was abducted from Kfar Aza, along with his mother, a sister and brother. They're also now freed.

But returned, their uncle told me, to a shattered family. Tal's other sister, Yam, and father, Nadav, were both murdered.

OMRI ALMOG, UNCLE AND BROTHER OF FORMER HAMAS HOSTAGES: I mean, the best is in front of us. It's going to come. Whatever happened, we cannot change. Nadav is no longer with us. Yam, the beautiful girl, is not with us anymore.

CHANCE: But there's still a chance. There's still a chance for your sister, and your children.

ALMOG: Yes, yes. We have to bring what's left, we have to bring back what's left from this family. It's a broken family.

CHANCE (voice-over): And there are so many broken families. With each hostage release, they now start to help rebuild.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE) [00:05:00]

HOLMES: Now, Qatar has played a key role in mediating the agreement between Hamas and Israel, and it now says it, too, is hoping that the four-day truce will be extended, and will lead to more serious discussions about the rest of the hostages.

An Israeli source who says the war cabinet discussed the possibility of an extension Sunday night, also says conditions remain unchanged. That means Hamas would need to release an additional ten hostages for each additional day's pause in fighting.

The White House says U.S. President Joe Biden is in contact with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, about the release of the hostages. The two leaders agreeing that the work is not yet done. And Mr. Biden saying he thanked the prime minister for his, quote, "tireless efforts" to help broker and fully implement this deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That's our goal, to keep this pause going beyond tomorrow, so we can continue to see more hostages come out, and surge more humanitarian relief into -- into those who are in need in Gaza.

We've seen, this is a day-by-day approach. Nothing is guaranteed. Nothing is being taken for granted.

But the proof that this is working and we're pursuing it further is in every smile, and every grateful tear we see on the faces of those families who are finally getting back together again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, before the third group of hostages were released by Hamas on Sunday, CNN's Wolf Blitzer asked the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, about the prospect of extending the truce.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: So you are open to extending the truce?

ISAAC HERZOG, ISRAELI PRESIDENT: So again, the way you interpret the word "truce" is complicated. We've already agreed. We've made it public that it is, above -- for the initial four days, there's a release of further prisoners. Ten per day, or something, ten or 11. I don't have the exact numbers. We will extend the humanitarian pause, meaning the truth. That's the way --

BLITZER: You call it a pause?

HERZOG: Yes, and but our clear intention is to go in and complete the job. Because we must not enable this -- base of terror, this platform of terror, which was taken over by cold coup d'etat in 2007 by Hamas, to continue. And how would you expect anybody who went through these horrific

torments, and horrific scene, and this barbaric attack on October 7th with rape and torture, and beheading and chopping, and mutilating volleys, and abducting hostages?

How can you expect anybody to go back there if there's no complete end to this threat?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Meanwhile, there were celebrations in the occupied West Bank as dozens more Palestinian prisoners were released from Israeli jails, as part of the deal between Israel and Hamas.

Crowds of well-wishers in Ramallah waved Palestinian and Hamas flags and gathered around a bus which was carrying some of the freed prisoners, as you can see there.

Celebrations more subdued in Jerusalem, where Israeli police have specifically warned against celebrations. Israeli Prison Service says 39 prisoners and detainees, all male teenagers, were released on Sunday from seven prisons.

Twenty-three of the 39 have been held under administrative detention, meaning not charged, nor convicted.

The Palestinian prisoners released Sunday were all 18 years old or younger, the youngest 14 years old. According to information from the Israeli Prison Service, and the Palestinian Prisoners Society, some of them were detained without even knowing the charges they might face.

And as CNN's Nada Bashir reports, many of those released say they were abused while in custody.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carried through the crowds, celebrated by thousands of Palestinians, these boys are among 33 teenagers released from Israeli prisons on Saturday.

(CHEERING)

BASHIR (voice-over): This is, for many in the occupied West Bank, a moment of hope. And for those now freed, a moment of utter relief.

"I'm so happy, I can't believe this is real," Ibrahim says. "I don't even know what to say."

This scene, a product of a delicate four-day truce agreement between Israel and Hamas, set to see 150 Palestinian prisoners and detainees released and at least 50 Israeli hostages freed from Hamas captivity in Gaza.

There are many Palestinian families who will still be waiting anxiously to hear if their loved ones will, too, be freed. The Tamimi family, seen here on Saturday, has rallied for months,

calling for the release of 17-year-old Wissam. He was seriously injured by Israeli forces, and later arrested in June, accused by Israel of offenses including possessing a weapon, but he was never charged.

Now he, and his family, are finally together again.

"I can't describe to you how I'm feeling right now. I honestly can't believe it. I feel like I'm in a dream," Wissam's mother, Hunaida, says. "My son is finally with me. I think God and pray that every mother will be able to feel this joy. I pray God grants the Palestinian people this happiness. We just want to build to smile and laugh together."

Many of those now released are among the over 3,000 Palestinians held under administrative detention, meaning no charges have been laid against them, and no ongoing legal process.

Israel says some of those released were being held on terror or weapons charges. But in a list published by Israeli authorities, of 300 women and children eligible for release, throwing stones and harming regional security were among the most common charges.

DR. MUSTAFA BARGHOUTI, PALESTINIAN POLITICIAN AND ACTIVIST: There are children here who have been in jail for eight years, five years, six years. It's unacceptable. Many of them have now huge psychological problems because of the torture, at least psychological torture because of the way they were interrogated. It is -- it is a terrible atrocity that is practiced against these children.

BASHIR (voice-over): For the crowds gathered here in the occupied West Bank, this celebration, they say, is a symbol of justice. Bringing thousands of Palestinians together, to share in the joy of now- reunited families.

But for many, that joy is coupled with grief, with pain felt deeply here for the people of Gaza.

JANNA JIHAD, COUSIN OF WISSAM TAMIMI: We are extremely happy, but still overwhelmed and extremely saddened by everything going on here in Palestine. But at the same time, still resilient, keep going with whatever we can do in order to hopefully achieve a ceasefire. And, hopefully later on, a full liberation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BASHIR: Many of the teenagers we spoke to, who have been released as part of that truce agreement told me they had experienced abuse and mistreatment while in detention.

And we have now received a response from the Israeli Prison Service spokesperson, who has said that all those who have been released were serving time for serious offenses and that all prisoners are detained under the provisions of Israeli law. But of course, as we know, many of those detained are held under

administrative detention, meaning charges laid against them, no clear legal process. Many are hopeful, of course, still, that they will see their loved ones, their children, their relatives, released on that final day of the truce agreement, as it currently stands.

Many families waiting to see if their loved ones are on that list. All prisoners and detainees set to be released on Monday.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Nada Bashir reporting there.

Now, dozens of trucks carrying much-needed food and aid supplies have reached Northern Gaza, but many more are still waiting to enter by the Rafah crossing. Details coming up.

Also, tragedy strikes at home for a U.N. aid official. After a quick break, hear our conversation on his struggle to cope after the deaths of his brother and young family in Gaza. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: At least 120 trucks carrying aid into Gaza on Sunday, according to the Egyptian government, and the Palestinian Red Crescent says 100 of those trucks delivered food, water, relief items, first- aid supplies, and medicine to Gaza City and the Northern areas to thousands of people in desperate need, who have been unable to flee South.

More trucks are waiting to enter Gaza through the Rafah crossing, during the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas. Some Gaza residents took this pause in fighting as an opportunity to TRY TO return to Northern Gaza, only to find their homes and communities destroyed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OUSSAMA AL BASS, LOST HIS HOME IN NORTHERN GAZA (through translator): I came back here. I can't speak; I can't. There's nothing but destruction. I came to see, to see what was left, if there was anything left. If there was anything I could save.

We fled with nothing. We took nothing, absolutely nothing. No clothes, no money. God alone is my witness. We're coming back to look to see if there's anything. It's empty. Everything is destroyed. Everything is lost.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Egyptian officials say the number of aid trucks is expected to increase in the coming hours.

Hani Almadhoun is the director of philanthropy with UNRWA in the USA. Speaking with us in a personal capacity, of course. Now, Hani, we've spoken several times about the humanitarian situation

in Gaza, and also your concerns for your own family members there. And we now know that your worst fears became reality. What happened, and how are you?

HANI ALMADHOUN, DIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY, UNRWA IN THE U.S.: Mike, thank you for having me.

It's about Friday morning, U.S. time, we received a call from Greece, from my nephew. He is crying on the phone and shared the news that my brother, Mathie (ph), my younger brother, who is my buddy and, you know, is that -- has been killed in his house, two hours before the truce with his entire family. And their bodies are trapped in the rubble, because it's a four-story building that they're under. And the Israeli army brought down, they made sure that nobody can get to them.

And unfortunately, the only body that was recovered instantly was the body of Omer (ph), who flew 20 meters away from the home. He was buried immediately.

But the folks, the rest of the family have to be dug up with shovels. And my family begged everyone in the North to come with the bulldozers. Nobody has been able to come and rescue them.

And my poor mom, diabetic, 71 years old, lost her child and sitting there in the rubble crying and trying to protect his body from the stray dogs so they don't munch on his body and remains. It's horrifying. She's helpless, I'm helpless.

And this happens, you know. Nobody tells you how big (ph) your grief is.

HOLMES: But -- yes, protecting your child's body from the dogs. I can imagine it's impossible to really express how you begin to cope with a loss like that, being so far away from your family members. I mean, I just really, in some ways, don't know what to say. How do you cope with that?

ALMADHOUN: You know, you would think faith would come and save you, but I am having doubts about my own faith at this time. You know, they did not deserve to die.

Ali was seven years old, and he loved to dance, and he is no longer here. And you wonder if your own life has a value.

Days before, a week before, I emailed their name to the State Department to evacuate my family (ph) members. Six of those people I've submitted to the U.S. government to evacuate, they have been killed now.

And it's just -- you know, it's -- you can wait and see, but you'll be sitting and maybe having a sip or a drink or something, and then you start crying.

Because then you remember your brother sending a location tag on your phone and say, here I'm here. Come see me. [00:20:05]

And now you know, like you know exactly you're going to be for eternity and you don't have to, you know, think about this. You're helpless. Nobody can help you right now. I support the largest humanitarian actor inside Gaza by making sure they have the funds they need, and I can get my mom some water in the North.

It's heartbreaking, and I don't know how we get out of there. And the terrifying part is that I know this is not the last of the sad events in Gaza. And I worry that more and more of my next of kin, will not be with us in the next few hours, or days, or weeks.

HOLMES: Yes, yes. You know, I was doing an interview yesterday with somebody, and we were talking about the fact that 50 to 60 percent of housing in Gaza is destroyed or badly damaged. You've got 1.7 million people displaced. Everything from bakeries, to factories, to you know, water and sanitation, is being destroyed.

I know you're still carrying on with your humanitarian work, but do you worry that even when this stops, Gaza is going to find it difficult to even function as a society?

ALMADHOUN: Yes, I mean, 100 percent, that's the biggest worry. If the war ends now, it doesn't seem like it, but if it ends now, there's, you know, 60 percent of the folks would be homeless. And in fact, many of these homes are uninhabitable right now.

My family lost two homes, possibly the third one that they can't get to because it's in that Tal al-Hawa neighborhood by al-Quds Hospital.

So there is a lot of disruptions to life, you know. And you find people, and now my family have to stand in the bread line, if they can find one, and imagine that we've lost our homes, our dreams. These homes, you know, were built decades ago, and they're destroyed now.

And, you know, we could rebuild, and we could seem like we're tough, but this is really hard. Because you know, you can't bring back the dead. You can't heal those who are traumatized for life, and it's just for nothing. Right? They were sleeping with their family, a family that had nothing to do with anything and got killed.

HOLMES: My heart breaks for you, Hani, and you know, I can only send, you know, my condolences to you. You're a good man, and you do great work. And just a horrible story amid many horrible stories.

Hani Almadhoun, thank you so much. Appreciate you making the time.

ALMADHOUN: Thank you, and I'm here to honor their memory and all the good people that I know that do not deserve to die. Thank you, and hopefully, we'll see you soon.

HOLMES: Still to come here on CNN, we'll have much more on the recently-released hostages as many reunite with their families after being held by Hamas for seven weeks. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:25:23]

HOLMES: Welcome back to our viewers around the world. I'm Michael Holmes. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

Now, the end of a four-day temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is approaching, amid discussions of a possible extension.

Sources telling that on Sunday, Israel's war cabinet discussed the possibility of prolonging the pause in fighting, something Hamas says it wants, as well.

The third exchange of hostages and prisoners was conducted Sunday. Seventeen hostages held by Hamas were freed, including a 4-year-old American-Israeli dual citizen.

Later in the day, Israel released 39 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, all of them male teenagers.

The group of hostages released by Hamas on Sunday included 14 Israelis and three Thai nationals.

CNN White House correspondent Jeremy Diamond is in Israel monitoring events for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Thirteen more civilian Israelis hostages freed from Hamas captivity as part of this deal between Israel and Hamas that has resulted in a fragile truce between the two warring parties.

DIAMOND (voice-over): We actually were standing right at this intersection, as a convoy with 12 of those hostages, newly-freed hostages, actually came right down this road on their way to the Hatzerim Airbase.

One of those newly-freed hostages was actually medically evacuated by helicopter directly from the Gaza Strip to a hospital in Southern Israel.

Her name is Elma Avraham. She is 84 years old. And the hospital where she's being treated reports that she is in serious condition, saying, quote, "Her life is in danger."

Now, this evacuation, the release of these hostages, actually happened differently than these last two nights, coming directly from the Gaza Strip into Israel, rather than going through the Rafah crossing into Egypt first.

And we're told that it is because of that serious medical issue with Elma Avraham.

Now the process, other than that, went relatively smoothly. We saw a fairly quick release of these hostages and their entry back into Israel. That was a big contrast with what we saw on Saturday.

On the second day of hostage release, where the release of those hostages was delayed by hours by Hamas over disputes about the number, the amount of aid that Israel was providing to the Gaza Strip.

And also, I'm learning that there was another serious dispute, over one of the hostages being released without her mother. We've typically seen children and mothers who were taken hostage together being released together, but that was not the case with one of those hostages on Saturday.

The question now is whether or not this pause in fighting can be extended. Whether or not we will see more hostages released.

In order to extend that pause in fighting, Hamas will need to release ten more Israeli hostages per day, for an additional day's pause in the fighting.

Israeli officials have already indicated that they want to see that pause extended. They want to see more hostages released. And Hamas on Sunday now saying in a statement that they are also seeking to extend this truce.

The fate of more than 180 hostages, as well as hundreds more aid trucks entering into Gaza hang in the balance.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Urim, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: And hostages freed by Hamas are experiencing joyful reunions with their families. I want to show you now the Almog family after the release Sunday of 49-year-old Chen Goldstein-Almog and her children: 17-year-old daughter Agam, 11-year-old son Gal, and 9-year-old son Tal.

Some of the hostages released Friday are being discharged from medical care. Hannah Perry was among that first group. She was released from a hospital on Sunday.

Similarly, Danielle Aloni and her 5-year-old daughter Emilia were also in that first group of freed hostages. They also were discharged from the hospital Sunday.

Hospital staff cheered on a 33-year-old Filipino hostage, freed by Hamas, after he was discharged on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Jimmy Pacheco is a father of three and was working as a caregiver when he was taken in Israel.

On Sunday, three more Thai hostages were released in Gaza, along with a dual Russian-Israeli citizen. Fifteen other freed foreign nationals are in stable condition and improving, according to the director of Israel's Shamir Medical Center.

She says they are happy to be there, and are getting the care they need.

[00:30:03]

CNN's Wolf Blitzer spoke with the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, in Jerusalem Sunday. They discussed what a long-term solution in Gaza could look like, beyond this temporary pause in fighting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Given the stakes involved, do you see Israel effectively re- occupying Gaza?

HERZOG: So it's not effectively re-occupying Gaza, because there must be, and there will be, also international involvement. Palestinian involvement. Israeli involvement. These things have to be worked out. And they are -- they are only now starting to discuss these things.

Basically, starting from the United States of America, Europe, the relevant Arab countries will have a say in their ability both to mediate, as well as to help. And the regional forces, and the Palestinians and the Israelis.

I'm not now painting the exact solution. It's not under my domain. I'm the head of state, but I don't have executive powers. But my own vision of the way it has to be dealt with, is -- is some sort of a formation that is effective enough, but also represents the various interests.

This is the vision. It has to be an interim process until there will be an exiting, where we are all sure that Gaza is not any more a terror base.

So don't go back to the same merry-go-round of wars, of suffering, of terror, et cetera, et cetera.

BLITZER: So what I hear you saying -- and correct me if I'm wrong, Mr. President, is an -- you want an international coalition, together with Israel, the United States, other countries, effectively taking charge.

HERZOG: There has to be something in that line, and has to be something that makes sense. And I would say further, that this idea of a coalition, or joint forces, also has to look as to the future of regional stability.

If we look at the future of regional stability, it means fighting and making sure that all the enemies of peace in the region must be defeated.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: President Herzog said he does consider this break in fighting to be a pause. But that it is possible the current truce could be extended if Hamas releases more hostages beyond this initial agreement.

In London, tens of thousands took to the streets in a march against antisemitism. On -- Sunday's demonstration coming amid a steep rise in hate crimes, especially against London's Jewish community and follows Saturday's pro-Palestinian march.

London police say antisemitic offenses increased more than tenfold during October, compared to last year.

And three Palestinian college students were shot in Burlington, Vermont, in the U.S. on Saturday evening. Now, civil rights organizations and the victims' families are calling on authorities to look into possible bias the attacker might have had.

Here's CNN's Carlos Suarez with the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Authorities in Vermont are looking into the possibility this was a hate crime.

SUAREZ (voice-over): According to police in Burlington, the three Palestinian students were walking on a street on their way to visit a relative on Saturday when they were confronted by a man armed with a gun. All three students were shot.

Now, at the time of the shooting, we're told that two of the three victims were wearing a keffiyeh. That's a traditional Palestinian scarf. We're told the photo of the three students was taken earlier in the day on Saturday.

SUAREZ: All three victims are being treated at Vermont Medical Center.

Two of them, we're told, are in stable condition. The third suffered more serious injuries.

SUAREZ (voice-over): Now, according to the Institute for Middle East Understanding -- that's an organization that is in contact with the victims' family, the students were identified as 20-year-old Tahseen Ahmad, Kinnan Abdalhamid; and Hisham Awartani.

We're told all three graduated from a private school in the West Bank before coming to the U.S. to attend different colleges.

Awartani's great-uncle, a former Palestinian minister of education, said Awartani was visiting his grandmother.

SUAREZ: Here now is an attorney representing one of the victims' family on why they're certain this was a hate-motivated crime.

ABED AYOUB, LAWYER FOR VICTIM'S FAMILY: The suspect walked up to them and shot them. They were not robbed, they were not mugged, it was a targeted shooting, and a targeted crime.

And they were wearing the keffiyeh. They are known in the area, you know, for being Palestinian. That's a very well-known symbol. It's a very well-known cloth. It's very symbolic of the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian culture and history.

So the fact that they were wearing this and then fell victim to the shooter, leads us to believe that this definitely, their identity played a role in them being targeted.

[00:35:07]

SUAREZ (voice-over): Sunday night, a crowd gathered outside of the Burlington city hall and called on police to investigate the shooting as a hate crime.

Now, earlier in the day, the chief of police said no one can look at this incident and not suspect it may have been a hate-motivated crime.

SUAREZ: The FBI said it is aware of the incident, and they're ready to investigate the shooting.

Carlos Suarez, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Still to come here on the program, the families of Chinese victims who died on Malaysian Airlines Flight MH-370 are finally getting their long-awaited day in court.

But their hard-fought battle for answers and closure is far from over. That's when we come back.

And also, as conflict rages in parts of the world, how people are finding hope and comfort in the spirit of the holidays.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: All right. A quick look now at some of the other stories making news around the world.

Compensation hearings are now underway in Beijing for the families of Chinese victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. About 40 families are suing the airline, as well as its insurer, Boeing, and the manufacture of the plane's engine.

The plane disappeared, of course, over the Indian Ocean nearly ten years ago, a mystery that's still never been solved.

Of the 239 people on board, 153 were Chinese nationals. The plaintiffs in the hearings, who've turned down previous settlement offices [SIC] -- offers, claimed that the tragedy not only deprived them of their loved one but also left them in financial distress.

And in Northern India, rescuers are facing technical challenges as they tried to say 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel that partially collapsed two weeks ago.

But rescue operations stalled again over the weekend, after their drill was damaged beyond repair. They had drilled about two thirds of the way through the rubble as of Wednesday. Food, water and oxygen are being sent to the trapped workers through a pipe.

Now, the headlines may be filled with news of war and conflict, from Europe to the Middle East. But people around the world are still finding reason for hope as the holiday season brings warmth and cheer to many.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES (voice-over): A gift from one city to another. Every year for the past 76 years, the people of Oslo fell a tree from a nearby forest to send to London, where it will shine bright for the holiday season in Trafalgar Square, a token of gratitude for Britain's support of Norway during World War II.

A beacon of hope for some, and a break from some of the bleakness in the world.

ANNE LINDBOE, OSLO MAYOR: But it's also come to mean so much more, and we are living in this really, really dark times. And I think the Christmas tree, it symbolizes piece. It symbolizes standing together, friendship between cities.

HOLMES (voice-over): That spirit of love and light in full swing in many cities, from the celebrations on the Champs Elysees, to a holiday selfie with a sparkling backdrop in Madrid, or a stroll through a Christmas market, where the warmth of the season is doled out by the cupful.

ISABELLE SERVANT, TOURIST (through translator): It's the magic of Christmas. The lights, the mulled wine, the cinnamon, the pretzels. You get away from the everyday.

HOLMES (voice-over): But there are some places where loss overshadows joy.

In Israel, despite the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, there is hope more Israeli families could be reunited with loved ones, kidnapped by Hamas, before Hanukkah begins in a week and a half.

Christian leaders in Jerusalem have advised churches in the region to refrain from overly festive activities for Christmas. The city of Bethlehem, in the occupied West Bank, which is usually illuminated each year to mark the birth of Jesus, says it is dismantling its Christmas decorations this year, in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

Ukraine faces its second Christmas while at war with Russia. This year, it's officially moved the holiday to December 25, when many Christian denominations celebrate it, instead of following the Russian Orthodox calendar, which observes it on January 7. Last year, there were some reservations about putting up a tree in

Kyiv's city center, but a 12-meter-high artificial tree was lit up in the colors of Ukraine's flag, the lights powered by a generator because of repeated Russian attacks on the country's energy infrastructure.

Kyiv's mayor called it a tree of invincibility, a light that won't go out, even in the darkness of war.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes. You can follow me on Twitter, Threads, and Instagram, @HolmesCNN.

Do stay with us. WORLD SPORT is coming up next. And my friend and colleague, Laila Harrak, will have more of CNN NEWSROOM from Barcelona in 15 minutes.

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