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Donald Trump Heads To Mideast As Israel Awaits Hostage Release; Four People Killed, 20 Injured In South Carolina Bar Shooting; Tidal Flooding Hits Norfolk, Virginia As Nor'easter Strengthens. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired October 12, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:22]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Hello and thanks very much for joining me. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Tel Aviv along with Erica Hill in New York. Fredricka Whitfield is off.

We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

And we begin this hour with major breaking news. Take a look at this live pictures coming out of Hostages Square here in Tel Aviv, where thousands of Israelis are eagerly awaiting the release of the remaining 20 living Israeli hostages being held in Gaza. That is expected to happen in the coming few hours.

Meanwhile, President Trump is set to depart from The White House this hour and will head to the region. He will address the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, before traveling to Egypt for a summit with world leaders.

In Gaza, meanwhile, the ceasefire is holding, thank God, for a third days, and trucks are rolling in and we are seeing very dramatic scenes like this one. Watch.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

BLITZER: About 400 trucks of desperately needed aid, medical equipment, medicine, food, water are expected to enter Southern Gaza today.

We have extensive live coverage of today's historic developments unfolding. Joining us here in Israel right now, CNN anchor and chief White House correspondent, Kaitlan Collins, along with CNN Jerusalem correspondent, Jeremy Diamond.

Jeremy, walk us through what we can anticipate happening in the next few hours.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, we are now in the window when those Israeli hostages could be released by Hamas. Really, any time between now and noon tomorrow, local time. We understand that all 20 living hostages are expected to be released at the same time, very likely that is going to happen in the early hours of tomorrow morning, but we still don't have final certainty around it.

We know that there has also been some wrangling around the list of Palestinian prisoners set to be released in exchange for those hostages, and once those hostages are released within the next few hours of that, I think we will likely see the Palestinian prisoners be released as well, 250 who are serving life sentences from Israeli prisons, as well as 1,700 Palestinians who were detained in Gaza over the course of this (AUDIO ISSUES) detained without charge or released most of them to the Gaza Strip, some of them to third party countries, particularly those with life sentences. And then, of course, we will see those scenes of reunions on both sides, really.

But here in Tel Aviv, several area hospitals have prepared to receive all of those hostages. It is not the first time to do this, of course, but we will see those incredibly emotional reunions which these families have been waiting over two years for.

In Gaza as well, we have been seeing scenes of people reuniting, but also people returning to their homes, a lot of it has been reduced to rubble, unfortunately, as we have seen people returning to Gaza City in particular.

But aid is beginning to flow into Gaza now as well, in much larger quantities, and that is going to help, of course, alleviate the dire humanitarian situation there.

BLITZER: That's going to help save a lot of lives in Gaza as those trucks begin to move in from Israel into Gaza. We will watch that unfold as well.

I know, Kaitlan, you had a chance, as I did yesterday, to spend part of today in what is called Hostages Square in Tel Aviv and meet with some families.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and one thing that was kind of looming over it, Wolf, was the President, as he is hours away from -- he is about to leave The White House and hours away from being on the ground here, obviously, visiting a dramatically reshaped Israel from the last time he was here. And obviously, with this war, it has loomed over his entire presidency since he retook office back in January, and bringing it to an end was something that he sought to do.

I mean, every meeting that he had with Prime Minister Netanyahu, at least four or five at The White House has been defined by this issue and what was happening with it.

And so, in this moment, as he is preparing to come here, there is so much praise for him here in Tel Aviv. I was speaking with some of these families who felt that the Trump administration did keep the fight to bring their loved ones home at the forefront.

One of those is Moshe Levi, whose brother-in-law has been held in Gaza ever since October 7th, and they've been fighting for his release. They've been speaking about it publicly. And earlier when I spoke with him in Hostages Square about President Trump, this is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOSHE LEVI, BROTHER-IN-LAW HAS BEEN HELD IN GAZA SINCE OCTOBER 7: And I felt it from President Trump and his administration, because they kept telling us in the past few months, keep doing what you're doing, keep marching on the streets, keep sharing your stories to policymakers, keep telling us what do you think needs to happen and give us ideas on how we can break the deadlock, and we kept doing that.

[15:05:15]

They kept open The White House for us, and President Trump has done it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Now, he and his sister were actually in Washington last week having a dinner with the Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, when this deal had been announced on Thursday by the President.

The President called in on speakerphone and talked to them after just a few words about what this is going to look like, and so expect that to be a key moment when the President is here on the ground, because he is going to be meeting with the families of Israeli hostages and Israeli hostages themselves, in addition to speaking to Israel's Parliament.

And so watching that dynamic and also how it plays out with Prime Minister Netanyahu, who was booed at Hostages Square yesterday when Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, brought his name up as President Trump himself was cheered. Those are just key moments to watch and to see, you know, what this looks like and also what it means for the Trump presidency going forward as they start to navigate, what are the next issues after these hostages are released and the prisoners are also released?

BLITZER: Yes, I was at Hostages Square yesterday, so many of the people there were saying negative things about Trump -- negative things about Netanyahu, I should say, positive things about Trump, negative things about Netanyahu, because they thought over these past two years, Netanyahu was more interested in his own political future and keeping his coalition together, as opposed to saving the lives of the hostages.

COLLINS: And one thing that Moshe said to me was, this doesn't mean they agree with Trump on every issue. That's not what this support translates to. They were just saying this in particular, which is obviously number one for them, is what has garnered that support.

BLITZER: And Jeremy, you're here in Tel Aviv all the time. Is that what you're hearing as well? DIAMOND: Yes, I mean, listen, a lot of the people who have come out, you know, Saturday night after Saturday night, tens of thousands of people, sometimes hundreds of thousands at a time. A lot of, you know, their protests have been to try and put pressure on the Israeli government and Israeli government that many of them have felt betrayed by, that they felt that Prime Minister Netanyahu was not prioritizing the release of the hostages, but instead, as you said, Wolf, prioritizing his political survival and this kind of lofty objective of destroying Hamas, which many security analysts here in Israel have felt was an unachievable goal because Hamas is an ideology above all, and the idea of destroying their entire force seemed highly unlikely.

But in securing this deal, Prime Minister Netanyahu is having to now recalibrate a bit and figure out what his picture of victory is as he prepares for potential elections next year as well.

BLITZER: The elections are scheduled for next October, October of 2026.

DIAMOND: It could be moved up earlier.

BLITZER: It could be moved up earlier as well, and I thought it was really powerful when Steve Witkoff was speaking yesterday at the Hostages Square. To all the folks, thousands, tens of thousands of people who were there every time he mentioned President Trump, there was wild applause, "Thank you Trump. Thank you Trump. Thank you Trump." And when he mentioned Netanyahu, there were boos. That was pretty powerful stuff.

All right guys, thank you very much. We will continue our special coverage.

Jeremy Diamond, Kaitlan Collins here with me in Tel Aviv.

Right now, I want to go back to Washington. CNN's Kevin Liptak is over at The White House.

Kevin, I know the President is preparing to leave in just a few minutes from now. What can we expect? He is going to be heading over to Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington and then fly what? Nonstop here to Tel Aviv, is that right?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, it is about an 11- hour flight to the Ben Gurion Airport. From there, he will head to the Knesset Building in Jerusalem. His schedule lists him as meeting with hostage families while he is there. It is not particularly clear whether he will meet with any of the hostages who have just come out of Gaza.

Then, as Kaitlan mentioned, he will address the Knesset, the last President to do that was George W. Bush back in 2008. From Jerusalem, he will head onwards to Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. That's the resort city where this deal was finalized last week, and he will preside over this Mideast peace ceremony with a number of other leaders. His counterparts from France, Britain, Germany, Italy all on hand to watch the President preside over this peace deal that he has brokered, and then he will come back to Washington.

It is a very short trip. His schedule has him on the ground in the region for only about eight hours or so, but still clearly a very significant one, as he really tries to seize on this moment and tries to use this narrow window to really kind of reshape the entire Middle East, and when you talk to administration officials, I would say the sense right now is one of anticipation, it is one of expectancy, but I think there is also a degree of caution.

And I think Jared Kushner probably summed it up best when he was speaking in Hostages Square last evening when he said that we are not going to celebrate until we actually see those hostages coming out, until we see the first phase of this deal really in place.

There is an acknowledgment that this is a fragile moment. This is a delicate deal, and I don't think anyone is going to breathe easy until they see those individuals emerging from the enclave.

[15:10:03]

Officials are also very quick to acknowledge that this is the first phase, but that there is a long road to go until all other aspects of this are finalized. You know, this deal doesn't resolve some of the thorniest questions, whether -- it is whether Hamas disarms, what the future of governance looks like in Gaza. And of course, the biggest question is whether there will be a Palestinian State at the end of all of this. That is all left for future phases of the discussion.

So certainly, the President's trip today will be a valedictory one. He has accomplished something quite significant, but I think it is also, in many ways, just the start of this process and not the end of it -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Yes, good point. A lot has been achieved, there is no doubt about that, but a lot more still needs to be achieved.

Kevin Liptak at The White House for us. Kevin, thank you very, very much for your reporting.

I want to send it back to my colleague and friend, Erica Hill, who is joining us from New York with more news -- Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Wolf, thank you. Of course, we will get back to you in just a moment with so much developing there in the Middle East.

We are also, though, here in New York, keeping a very close watch on this powerful nor'easter already unleashing heavy rain. Big concerns about coastal flooding as this storm marches north along the eastern seaboard. We have some live pictures, I believe we can show you.

This is Seaside Heights, New Jersey. Conditions certainly worsening within just the last half an hour or so since we last checked in on that shot. Winds in the area have already reached over 50 miles per hour. And of course, the most dangerous conditions are still to come.

Stay with us. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:16:13]

HILL: New today, officials are investigating what led to a mass shooting in South Carolina that left four people dead and 20 others injured. The incident took place at a bar on Saint Helena Island, that's north of Hilton Head Island. It happened during a packed celebration for a high school alumni.

The bar's owner telling CNN affiliate WJCL, a security guard was one of the victims killed. So far, no arrests have been made.

We have some shocking video now of the moment a helicopter crashed in California on Saturday. A witness telling CNN, the chopper's landing gear was down, which you can see in this video here, when a piece broke off, causing it to spin out of control before crashing down into some trees.

Huntington Beach officials say two people were rescued from the wreckage. Three others on the street were injured. All five were taken to the hospital for treatment.

The chopper was part of an event scheduled for today. The FAA and the NTSB are investigating.

At this hour, a brutal nor'easter is churning its way up the Eastern Seaboard, bringing the threat of flooding with it. Right now along the Carolina Coast, we have some new video to show you out of Norfolk, Virginia. This is an image of the high tide. You can see it spilling into some of the streets there already, flooding on the ground, the coastal storm is expected to inundate the Mid-Atlantic. Especially hard with heavy wind gusts and coastal flooding throughout the coming hours.

CNN meteorologist, Allison Chinchar is tracking the latest forecast as this storm strengthens. So, Allison, what are you seeing?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We have not one, but two low pressure systems sitting off the Eastern Seaboard, and this is what is going to lead to that potential for flooding, but also the very gusty winds over the next few days. Now that low pressure off to the north fades away, the southern one becomes the more stronger of the two and really becomes very impactful across portions of the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast through the evening hours tonight and especially into Monday.

We've already had some very powerful wind gusts reported in the 50 and 60 mile per hour range along the Carolina Coastline, but these numbers are what we expect to see, especially in the Northeast going through the day on Monday.

As for flooding potential, two separate areas here to finish out the rest of Sunday. Likely going to still see much of the same coloring for Monday, as well as more of that heavy rain is expected to inundate the Northeast over the next 24 to 36 hours. Through the overnight hours tonight, we still anticipate some heavy rain across the Carolinas, but the bulk of the rain is now expected to shift into portions of the Northeast. This means, if you have some travel plans Monday morning, whether it is by car or by plane, please anticipate some delays, not just for the heavy downpours, but also the very gusty winds that are expected.

Here you can see New York, Philadelphia, Boston, all looking at some very heavy rain bands to slide through, not just Monday morning, but even through the afternoon and the evening hours.

So this is not going to be a very quick storm. You're going to see lingering effects well into the day on Tuesday, and that's the same for even the winds. Here, you can see Monday, lots of those yellows and the orange color indicating 40, 50, even 60 mile per hour wind gusts.

And also note, too, it is not just for Monday. A lot of those linger into Tuesday and even into early Wednesday, before we finally start to see them subside.

HILL: All right, Allison, appreciate the update. We will continue to follow that.

We also have CNN's Leigh Waldman standing by in Atlantic City, New Jersey. So things definitely picking up, I know when we spoke last hour. What are you seeing since then -- Leigh.

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Erica, like you mentioned, things are really picking up here. We are feeling a really strong gust of wind, but the most significant visual we have is the ocean. Look at what this nor'easter is doing to the ocean out here, massive waves just kicking up onto the Atlantic City Boardwalk here.

We are still seeing people walk around, wanting to take this in for themselves, but the rain has been consistent all day. These big gusts of wind nearly 50 mile per hour wind gusts are being felt right here in Atlantic City.

[15:20:10]

We spoke to the Emergency Management coordinators here about what resources they've brought into place. They brought out sandbags for businesses who are in those low-lying areas. They have high water rescue vehicles that have been brought in from the state, as well as swift water rescue teams. Two hundred cots have been put into place at the Convention Center, just in case anyone needs to evacuate out of their home, they have somewhere that is safe for them to go.

We spoke with the mayor of this community, and we are getting another pretty strong gust of wind here. The mayor of this community said they've used $20 million in funds after Hurricane Sandy in 2012 to try and shore up this area, should another major flooding event like we could be seeing here comes into place.

Take a listen to what the mayor had to say about the resources and preparation they have here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MARTY SMALL, SR., ATLANTIC CITY, NEW JERSEY: We had a storm, Erin, a couple of weeks ago, bad flooding, but it didn't have this combination, it didn't have the rains that we are going to get, didn't have the winds we are going to get.

But we urge the residents to continue to take this seriously and listen to our professionals because we know what we are doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALDMAN: And we've seen people taking this seriously. There is a lot of businesses that are in those low lying areas. They are putting sandbags in place to make sure that they don't see some significant damage from the flooding that is expected. Today and into tomorrow, we could see over eight feet of flooding in this area, which would be the most significant flooding this area has seen since Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

We already have road closures, Route 40 and Route 30 closed in and out of Atlantic City. New Jersey Transit closing some of their routes along the coastline here and we just want to show you one more time, look at the ocean here. You can see how powerful those waves are, and really hear the wind as it comes whipping through here.

This is why people are being told, take this seriously -- Erica.

HILL: Yes, absolutely.

Leigh, really appreciate it. I know you and your team will take it seriously and stay safe as well. Thank you.

We continue to follow the developments out of the Middle East. So many heartbroken Palestinians now heading home, only to find there is no home left.

Just ahead, we are joined by former CNN correspondent, Arwa Damon about how her charity is helping those who have lost everything.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:26:45]

BLITZER: As Israel prepares to welcome the living hostages home just a few hours from now, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says the release will mark what he is calling the beginning of a new era for the country.

Meanwhile, in Gaza, thousands are returning to neighborhoods in ruins and homes flattened following two years of war. President Trump has suggested Gaza will be rebuilt, but questions remain about how and when that might happen.

Joining us now is Arwa Damon, former CNN international correspondent, and now the president and co-founder of the nonprofit organization, International Network for Aid, Relief and Assistance.

Arwa, thanks for all you're doing. Thanks so much for joining us.

First of all, how is the ceasefire being received in Gaza based on everything you're hearing?

ARWA DAMON, FORMER CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, PRESIDENT AND CO- FOUNDER OF INTERNATIONAL NETWORK FOR AID, RELIEF AND ASSISTANCE: You know, it was quite a cascade of emotions for a lot of Palestinians in Gaza.

First and foremost, there was a certain level of relief and then a little bit of joy. But then reality really began to set in, Wolf, as so many, tens of thousands tried to make their way back to, well, what was home and what now is for the vast, vast majority of them, a pile of rubble. And that moment when they actually see that everything that they once held so dear, that all of their memories are just gone.

People are describing, trying to find where the local coffee shop used to be and not being able to recognize their streets and everything that used to hold, you know, warm, beautiful memories of life is just utterly pulverized. You know, you look at the images coming from Gaza, and I am sure you've noticed this, and maybe our viewers have noticed it, but you don't really see color. It is shades of gray.

We had one of our staffers try to -- our physical therapist try to go back up to Gaza City, and he is in complete shock. He was messaging me saying, I don't know what to think. I don't know what to do. I don't know how I am going to ever rebuild a semblance of a life again.

Just a couple of hours ago, I got videos from our Gaza Program Coordinator who went down to an area called Khan Younis. Wolf, I've been there before, and it was decimated when I was there. It is dust. And you see people in the middle of this dusty, apocalyptic moonscape trying to cycle through and salvage whatever it is that they can. They're trying to carry their tents with them, but the reality is that they don't have the tools that they actually need to survive. And, Wolf, they never really did.

But what we are seeing right now has completely and totally eclipsed our capacity to have the actual words that are needed to describe it.

BLITZER: As you know, Arwa, Israeli officials now say 600 aid trucks carrying food, medicine and other essential lifesaving equipment will be allowed into Gaza every day as part of this ceasefire agreement. What will be most needed, in your opinion, in Gaza over the coming days and weeks?

[15:30:00]

DAMON: You know, we get asked that all of the time, Wolf, and the answer has always been the same, Gaza needs absolutely everything. Gaza needs food. We need to be able to start to reverse the impacts of this starvation campaign that was carried out by Israel, reverse the impacts of the famine. So we need food parcels and we need nutrient packs. Hospitals need everything that you could possibly imagine, and baby incubators are not available in Gaza right now and have not actually been permitted to enter Gaza since March of 2024.

So right now we have situations where babies aren't just sharing a single incubator, they're having to even share oxygen masks.

Shelter items are desperately needed. If we look back to the first ceasefire that happened earlier this year, Wolf, when shelter items were supposed to be let in, they actually weren't, not in sufficient quantities. And then we need the bits and pieces to be able to get, you know, water mains reworking, desalination plants up and running.

You need fuel for the trucks, you need diggers to be able to clear roads. I mean, you even need spare parts for the trucks. No new truck has entered Gaza for the last two years, so you can imagine the condition that the capacity that we actually have to be able to mobilize stuff inside Gaza has been diminished, too.

And what you're talking about is, yes, an enormous task, but if Israel actually lives up to its end of the bargain and does allow those trucks into Gaza, the humanitarian organizations on the ground are ready to get the job done, and they can get the job done, as long as we are not continuously and repeatedly being impeded.

BLITZER: Including your organization, Arwa, as well.

The children of Gaza are now returning to homes in ruins after two years of war, hunger, trauma, loss of education. How traumatic has this time been for all the kids impacted by this war?

DAMON: I mean, imagine a child who is lost every single pillar of stability in their life and every single source of comfort. The children of Gaza don't even at this stage really remember or know what it was like to sleep in a bed or feel safe. They also know that mommy and daddy, if they're still alive, cannot keep them safe.

And you listen to some of the things that they say right now when they themselves heard the news about the ceasefire and its questions like, does this mean that we won't have to be scared anymore? Does this mean that we don't have to worry about another family member dying anymore? And they would ask questions like, you know, do the Israeli pilots flying overhead, do they have children and do they know that they're hurting children? And this is the mindset of a child.

And then you also have the way that this trauma manifests itself in their behaviors. You know, kids start bedwetting again. They end up displaying, you know, extreme aggression because they don't have the tools to be able to articulate their emotions. I mean, adults don't even know how to articulate what it is that they're going through.

Now, all of that being said and done, we do know especially I know through the work that my charity does because we are very heavily focused on mental health, that all of this can actually be addressed. We can give children the tools to be able to cope with the emotional tornado within them. But for us to be able to do that, Wolf, there is one very key thing that we need and that is stability.

We need to be able to build up pillars of stability for children, so it is a safe home, it is access to food and water, it is access to education. These things need to be built up and the triggers need to be eliminated so that a child can really begin to move forward.

I don't say heal from this because you never actually heal from an experience like this, but you do learn to live with and be able to cope with the pain and the emotions.

BLITZER: As you know, Arwa, President Trump is set to co-chair a summit on Gaza alongside the President of Egypt tomorrow. They'll be joined by leaders from more than 20 countries. What role could this summit play in trying to secure a better future for Gaza?

DAMON: It is very straightforward, Wolf. If the United States and its other allies that are currently at the table decide that Gaza is going to have a better future than what it is right now, and mind you, that bar is so extraordinarily low, then that can actually be done.

The one thing that a lot of us are very concerned about is, you know, President Trump going to lose interest in what is happening once the hostages have been released and fail to actually put adequate pressure on Israel to allow for humanitarian aid to get in, and then for an actual, real, robust reconstruction process to take place.

When you speak to Palestinians in Gaza, they are terrified. They are terrified of this being taken away from them once again and of having hope crushed once again. And everyone is very aware of the fact that this did come about because of pressure by the United States, by President Trump.

[15:35:10]

But if that pressure doesn't stay on adequately, then everything could go away. There are also very great fears that Israel is going to somehow manipulate a narrative that is then going to allow for bombing to resume again, and people can't tolerate what they've been through anymore, Wolf. They really, truly and genuinely can't, and they don't know how to cope with what it is that they're going through right now, in this very moment.

And so there is a lot of fear, but also a lot of awareness of the fact that the cards are in America's hands and how much pressure gets put on Israel to uphold its end of the bargain is very much America's decision.

BLITZER: Arwa Damon, thanks so much for joining us and thanks for your charity and all the work it is doing. We appreciate it very much.

And coming up, I will speak with Nissan and Sharon Kalderon. They are the brother and sister-in-law of former Israeli hostage, Ofer Kalderon. What they told me about the range of emotions that families are feeling as they anxiously await their loved ones.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [15:40:58]

HILL: Today marks the 12th day now of the ongoing government shutdown, and its impact is really starting to set in across the country.

The Smithsonian Museums and the National Zoo, some of the top spots for tourists in the nation's capital say they are now temporarily shutting down as the funding dries up.

CNN's Camila DeChalus is in Washington following these developments for us. So visitors, I am sure, not happy about those closings. What more are we seeing and what are we hearing from folks?

CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Erica, I talked to a number of people, people that traveled abroad from places like Australia, Bangladesh, London, you name it, and even people that traveled within the U.S. I've talked to families coming from California, Texas, Alabama, just solely for the purpose of going to see this Smithsonian Museums and not realizing that they were closed as an extent because of the government shutdown, and here are some of the things that they had to say. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH SILVA, TOURIST: It is just disappointing that they couldn't -- everyone can't work together, you know, and they're supposed to be here for the people, you know. And generations --

LUKE SKOPEK, TOURIST: I've been wanting to go here for a long time now, but the government shutdown, it is disappointing. I want to know history and all that stuff. It is really cool. I want to see it, but --

JEFF WALSH, TOURIST: It is disappointing, I guess that the government can shut down like this. It doesn't happen like this in Canada.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DECHALUS: Now, as you can see there, Erica, the words I kept hearing was shocked, disappointed to just to really refer to their emotions when finding out that these museums were closed, but just them really understanding the gravity of this government shutdown and exactly how much it impacts.

Now, I've been following the government shutdown every single day, and one thing that has made clear is that there are real life people that are being impacted by the government shutdown, as lawmakers try to confer amongst themselves on exactly a path forward, but there is still no deal in sight.

And so the gravity in the situations that were seeing and exactly what is being impacted because of the government shutdown still remains to be seen.

HILL: Yes, absolutely. Of course, we had all those layoffs on Friday as well. A lot to keep you busy, that is for sure in the days ahead, as we wait to see the two sides try to come together. It doesn't look like that is happening anytime soon.

Camila, appreciate the reporting. Thank you.

Just ahead here, a tight-knit community searching for answers following a devastating blast at a plant in Tennessee that left more than a dozen people dead, how officials are now working to determine the cause of that blast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:48:04]

BLITZER: We are of course, standing by for any word on the release of Israeli hostages from Gaza. Take a look at this. These are live pictures coming in from Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington, where President Trump is expected to depart for here in the Middle East any moment now.

Also, take a look at this live pictures coming in from Khan Younis in Gaza. These are not live pictures. This was earlier today. Trucks rolled through the streets as the ceasefire deal with Israel is holding. One Palestinian man tells CNN that safety and security is returning to the area and that's good news, to be sure.

Earlier, I spoke with Nissan and Sharon Kalderon. They are the brother and sister-in-law of former Israeli hostage, Ofer Kalderon. Ofer was released in February during the previous ceasefire agreement. Now, they are anxiously waiting for the release of all the hostages. Watch and listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Nissan Kalderon and Sharon Kalderon, first of all, Nissan, tell us why you are here.

NISAN KALDERON, OFER KALDERON'S BROTHER: We are here because we are a family and we have a member of the family we need to bring them back home and we hope that all people come back in 24 to 48 hours back to the family, back to us, and we can close this terrible situation -- two years citizen and citizens stay in the captivity of Hamas.

BLITZER: And both of you have family members who were hostages, who were taken by Hamas. Tell us about them.

SHARON KALDERON, OFER KALDERON'S SISTER-IN-LAW: Yes. Well, Ofer, Nissan's brother and his two children Sahar and Erez, were 12 years -- Sahar was 16, Erez was 12 when they kidnaped their father.

BLITZER: This is your brother, Ofer.

N. KALDERON: Yes, my small brother.

BLITZER: Your little brother.

N. KALDERON: Little brother.

S. KALDERON: Yes. Little brother, he came back -- the children came back after 52 days and Ofer came back last February, after 484 days.

[15:50:10]

BLITZER: And how is your brother, Ofer doing?

N. KALDERON: He is here. He is alive. The situation is terrible because he stay in hell too much days. But he is here. He is alive. He is with us.

S. KALDERON: And we can help him.

N. KALDERON: We can help him. And we know where he is. Because 480 days, we don't know -- nothing about him.

BLITZER: And these are pictures of those who are still being held hostage and that all of us hope will be released in the coming days.

N. KALDERON: Right. We have 48 people in our family that did not come back that are dead and alive.

S. KALDERON: Our new family of.

BLITZER: The family of hostages.

S. KALDERON: All of the hostage families, we came --

BLITZER: All of the people who are here in Hostages Square, they've come to support the hostages and they feel they are members of one big family.

N. KALDERON: Right. Yes, one big family. Right. All the people in Israel.

S. KALDERON: We have the friends.

BLITZER: And of these 48, the assessment is that 20 of them are still alive.

N. KALDERON: Right. Some of them are our friends, some of the dead, they are friends. We live in Kibbutz Nir Oz, it is a two kilometers from the Gaza Strip and we need to finish this terrible situation. A lot of day. Too much.

BLITZER: Too much dead.

N. KALDERON: Yes.

BLITZER: Yes, terrible situation.

And when they arrive here in Israel, will a lot of the hostage families like you be allowed to be there and to hug them and to welcome them?

S. KALDERON: It will take time. It will -- it will take time. First, they have to see their families, their friends. We are in the end of the list. It is very -- it is okay. They need their family first. They have to be stronger. But we are here and we are waiting.

BLITZER: And all of those hostages who are still alive and are going to be released, the first thing they will do is go to the hospital and be checked up for their physical condition.

N. KALDERON: Right.

BLITZER: I am sure Ofer, your brother, was at a hospital, too.

N. KALDERON: Yes. My brother go to the hospital for one week and they do all the examination that we need to know how he is feeling.

S. KALDERON: Physical.

N. KALDERON: Physical.

BLITZER: Physically, is he okay today?

S. KALDERON: Yes.

N. KALDERON: Right.

S. KALDERON: He is okay today.

BLITZER: He is okay. Good.

S. KALDERON: Mentally, very much okay.

N. KALDERON: Mentally.

BLITZER: Mentally, it is a long. Yes, a long time.

N. KALDERON: Right.

BLITZER: And I am sure he is excited knowing what is going on now.

N. KALDERON: Yes.

BLITZER: Because he probably knew several of those who were about to be released.

S. KALDERON: He was with them.

BLITZER: He was with them in the tunnels Gaza.

S. KALDERON: Yes.

BLITZER: Yes. So thank God he is okay.

S. KALDERON: Thank you.

BLITZER: And thank God, hopefully they will be back very, very soon.

S. KALDERON: We really hope so.

BLITZER: Sharon, good luck to you. S. KALDERON: Thank you very much.

N. KALDERON: Thank you very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And my special thanks to Nissan and Sharon Kalderon for sharing their story just now.

I will be back later tonight, 10:00 P.M. Eastern, alongside my colleague, Kaitlan Collins. We will have special live coverage here in the CNN NEWSROOM on the expected release of the Israeli hostages. We are planning to watch them be released and reunited with their families. We are coming up at 10:00 P.M. Eastern later tonight.

Much more on the breaking news still to come here. I want you to stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:58:05]

HILL: Authorities say they have notified now all the families of the 16 people who died in Friday's blast at a Tennessee explosives plant. In the coming days, investigators will be combing through what is left of that plant, trying to determine just what caused the explosion southwest of Nashville.

Accurate Energetic Systems employs about 80 people, many of them from the close-knit community there.

CNN's Isabel Rosales is near the plant in Hickman County, Tennessee where officials are holding a press conference right now. Isabel, there has been so much made about how tight-knit this community is. How are they holding up?

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, for the families of these workers, understandably, they are deeply upset. In fact, I was just speaking to one of the families of a missing worker. And again, the Sheriff said that all 16 workers are presumed to be dead, who said, despite the Sheriff mentioning that all of the families have been notified that, you know, this is no longer a search, this is a recovery that they haven't gotten official confirmation that their loved one is dead.

I was speaking to the identical twin sister of one of these workers, who told me that she was working outside of the building on Friday, early Friday morning, and they haven't heard from her since. They were swabbed for DNA and that is what investigators are going to be using to make those confirmations of identity.

On the investigators' side, they are saying that this is a very difficult scene to work with, that its volatile because there are live ordnance, explosives that they either have to remove or detonate to make sure that that area is safe to work with, and then they can continue with that process of identifying the victims of this explosion.

We also heard from the Sheriff over the past few days of Hickman County and Humphreys County, who both were deeply emotional as they shared updates because they said that they personally knew people who were impacted, who were killed in this explosion.

Listen now to Janie Brown, who was also deeply in pain. She said she worked with some of these victims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANIE BROWN, VICTIMS' FRIEND: It is going to be a sad, sad day in our community for a while. They were people. They were loved by their families and by their communities. They've been all around the communities. Everybody knew them. And it is just a sad, sad day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: What you're hearing here in the background is a helicopter taking off with Governor Bill Lee, who said he toured the facility here five years ago celebrating an expansion. Today, he went up on this helicopter touring over the explosion site, and he said to tour today and see nothing, Erica, he said, this is heartbreaking.

HILL: Yes, understandably, those images are so difficult to process. Isabel, appreciate it. Thank you.

[16:00:53]