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Families Gathering in Anticipation of Hostage Release; Trump, Egypt to Host Summit on Gaza Monday; U.N.: 'Real Progress' in Humanitarian Operations in Gaza. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired October 13, 2025 - 00:00   ET

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

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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

[00:00:53]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer, live from Tel Aviv.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Sara Sidner here in New York.

BLITZER: Good to be working with you, Sara. Thank you.

It's seven in the morning here in Tel Aviv, where Israelis are anxiously awaiting the release of the remaining hostages. That's expected to begin next hour.

Crowds are packing Hostage Square here in Tel Aviv. And we're learning that the families of hostages are on their way to the Re'im Israeli air base in Southern Israel. There, they will await the release of their loved ones more than two years after they were kidnapped by Hamas.

An Israeli official says 20 living hostages are expected to be released to the Red Cross. And a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office says once the hostages cross back into Israel to Re'im and elsewhere, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees will be released by the Israelis.

The U.S. president, Donald Trump, is now headed here to Israel, where he's set to meet with the prime minister and the families of the hostages before addressing the Israeli Knesset, the Israeli parliament. He spoke to reporters on board Air Force One. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, has not gone so far as to say the war is over. In your view, is the war between Israel and Hamas over?

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: The war is over. War is over. The war is over. OK? Do you understand that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, is the ceasefire going to hold? Are you confident the ceasefire will hold?

TRUMP: Say again?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you confident that the ceasefire is going to hold?

TRUMP: I think so. I think it's going to hold. I think people are -- a lot of reasons why it's going to hold, but I think people are tired of it. It's been -- it's been centuries, OK? Not just recent. It's been centuries. I think people are tired of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: CNN correspondents are tracking all the late breaking developments. Kaitlan Collins is here with me in Tel Aviv. Clarissa Ward is standing by at Hostage Square, also in Tel Aviv. And Jeremy Diamond is live at the Re'im Israeli air base. That's in Southern Israel, not too far away from Gaza.

And let me start with you, Clarissa. You're there at Hostage Square. Set the scene for us.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, people have been gathering here since before the sun rose.

And I have to say, it's a pretty extraordinary moment. There is an air of such serenity, such grace and calm. A mixture, of course, of -- of celebration, of relief, but also of sadness and of grief.

A lot of people here holding up posters for the hostages who will be coming home today in coffins; for those who are deceased. And we've heard chants from the crowd, and they're chants that we have been hearing all the time now for two years, Wolf, of "Everybody Now," meaning bring back the hostages, all of them now.

And today, it's finally happening. You have a real sense here of the fact that this is a historic moment. There are signs absolutely everywhere thanking President Donald Trump, but also messages to those hostages: "Welcome home, my darling." I saw one: "How long we have been waiting for you."

This is a country, Wolf, that has been aching for the return of these hostages.

We also heard chants of "Not left, not right. The hostages are everybody." Today, Wolf, is not a day for politics. It is a day for humanity and for the people of Israel, for unity.

And they're gathering now. As you can see, the crowds are getting bigger. Looking at that clock, which has been keeping track of every minute and every hour that they've been gone, and looking at that screen where they have been playing interviews on Israeli news channels with the families as they prepare to head to meet their beloved ones after two very long years -- Wolf.

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BLITZER: All right, Clarissa, I want you to stand by. We're going to be staying in very close touch with you.

I want to go to Jeremy Diamond. He's over at Re'im. That's in Southern Israel. You drove down there, Jeremy. I know it's not too far away from Gaza. That's where some of the hostages, I take it, will be showing up fairly soon. Is that right?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Wolf. And before the hostages do arrive, we are expecting the families of those hostages to arrive at this base. Some of them may already have arrived. And certainly, we know that they are, indeed, on their way.

This Re'im military base, right on the border with Gaza, is where we have seen previously those beautiful scenes of reunion between hostages during the previous ceasefires, when they were finally reunited with their families.

And this, of course, will be the sweetest reunion of all for the families of 20 of the living hostages, who are expected to be released today by Hamas, in fact, in the coming hours.

Those families will arrive here. There are special rooms that are set up at this base where they will have their first embrace with their loved ones.

You can see behind me, there are already some Israelis who have arrived here with flags to be able to line the roads here and welcome these hostages back home, show their support for them as they begin their journey to recovery.

There -- we -- you know, the last time I was here, Wolf, back in January, during the last ceasefire, we saw helicopters land right behind me here. And those helicopters would then take those newly- freed hostages to hospitals in the Tel Aviv area.

It is also important to note some of the symbolism that exists here today, Wolf, because very close to this military base is also the Nova Music Festival, where we just saw hundreds of Israelis arriving to celebrate the holiday of Simchat Torah, which is the exact same holiday on the Jewish calendar that was taking place when Hamas militants stormed into Israel and carried out that awful massacre on October 7, 2023.

Two years later, on the Jewish calendar, we are now going to see these 48 hostages be released from captivity, 20 of whom are still believed to be alive. And of course, those reunions anticipated not only by their families, but as you were seeing from Clarissa in Hostage Square, by Israelis all across the country -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And after, Jeremy, they arrive here in Israel, as you correctly point out, they'll be taken to various hospitals, including the Ichilov Medical Center right here in Tel Aviv, where they're already gearing up -- I was there yesterday -- gearing up to receive them and begin the medical treatment that they will need. Right?

DIAMOND: Yes, that's exactly right, Wolf. And as you know, they have prepared special rooms for many of these hostages. There are several hospitals, three hospitals in the Tel Aviv area that are prepared to receive hostages.

And of course, they know that there is all types of care that these hostages may require. And a lot of that stems from the fact that we do not know the condition in which these hostages will emerge from captivity.

We saw, of course, during the January and February ceasefire that there were several hostages who emerged looking very, very emaciated. We have seen videos of some of the hostages who remained in captivity since then, in particular in recent months. Videos that Hamas released showing them also looking very emaciated.

And so, these hospitals are prepared to treat them for malnourishment. They are prepared to treat them for a range of psychological ailments, as well. And of course, many of them also may have grievous wounds stemming from that October 7th attack or wounds that they may have endured during their two years of captivity.

These hospitals, as well as the military doctors who will be on hand here at the Re'im base, prepared for a range of scenarios. But there's no question that they will need a range of support after more than two years of captivity.

BLITZER: All right. Jeremy Diamond reporting for us from the Re'im military base down in Southern Israel, not too far from Gaza, where these hostages will make their first arrival in Israel before being transported to various hospitals, including right here in Tel Aviv.

Jeremy, thank you very, very much.

Kaitlan, you're here with me, too. We're watching all of this very, very closely. The president of United States is on his way. He'll be landing at Ben Gurion Airport fairly soon, then making his way to Jerusalem. He'll be addressing the Israeli parliament, the Knesset.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, but before he does that, Wolf, he's going to meet with some hostages and families that are gathered at the Knesset right now.

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We don't expect it to be the ones who are being released today. Obviously, we'll wait to see if that changes. But as Jeremy was noting there, you know, we've seen a lot of these hostages come out very malnourished, looking so different than they did when they were taken and kidnapped captive into Gaza.

It's actually images that really angered President Trump when it happened earlier this year, at how the hostages looked. It was something that he had talked about, I had heard privately, with a lot of his advisers as they talked about ending this war.

And so, he'll go to the parliament and speak with the Knesset there, but also meeting with these hostages' families face-to-face after arriving here at the airport.

And obviously, the president is coming here, and he's incredibly popular with Israelis right now. And a lot of the hostage families that we've spoken with have praised the president and his efforts to -- to bring this war to an end.

And one thing that was a really telling moment was that moment in Hostage Square the other night, where his envoy, Steve Witkoff, was speaking with Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump on either side of him. And he -- he said Prime Minister Netanyahu's name, and the crowd booed. And he said President Trump's name, and the crowd cheered.

And the president was actually asked about that moment on Air Force One as he made his way here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When Steve Witkoff was in Hostages Square last night, he mentioned Prime Minister Netanyahu, and the crowd booed. I wondered if you saw that.

TRUMP: I did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What you made of that?

TRUMP: I also saw the crowd cheer when he mentioned Trump, like, really cheer. And it's an honor.

No, as I said, I think Bibi did a great job. I had some words with him a couple of times where I didn't agree, and he was always -- he was the right guy at the right time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: And obviously, Wolf, the dynamic between Trump and Netanyahu has loomed over the end of this war and the tough conversations they've had, the moments where Trump has been very, very angry with Netanyahu.

There, offering him some praise. So, we'll see that interaction and what that looks like today, because obviously, Netanyahu only benefits from -- from appearing close with Trump and whatnot.

And Trump was very pleased with that rally that happened here. So, he's coming here in quite a good mood.

But just, Wolf, you know, being here on the ground after so many -- you know, two years of war, so many moments where it was just grief and sadness for so many people here in Israel. This moment, you can kind of feel that everyone is watching and waiting for these hostages to be released, which is going to happen shortly before the president arrives here. BLITZER: Yes, it's a very, very powerful, dramatic moment in the

history of Israel that is about to begin right now. We'll be watching it every second of the way.

COLLINS: Yes.

BLITZER: And Kaitlan will be joining us throughout the day. Thanks, Kaitlan, very, very much.

Joining us now is Alon-Lee Green. He's the co-founder of a group called Standing Together, a progressive Jewish-Arab grassroots movement.

Alon, thanks so much for joining us. I know you've been saying for months that a deal to free the hostages, stop the bombing of Gaza is long overdue. What does this moment mean for you?

ALON-LEE GREEN, CO-FOUNDER, STANDING TOGETHER: And good morning.

This is actually the moment we've been waiting for, fighting for, for two years. This is the moment where we get to see the remaining hostages coming back to their families.

This is the moment where we get to see Palestinians coming back to their homes, if they still have a home in Gaza. No more bombs dropping on -- on their heads in Gaza.

And this is also the moment where we can turn to our leadership -- Prime Minister Netanyahu, his very extreme ministers -- saying to them, now is the time for Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Because not having bombs, not having hostages is an amazing moment. But it's not enough. We need to move on from this moment towards Israeli-Palestinian peace, towards a Palestinian state alongside Israel, ending the occupation.

But we're happy. So, so happy right now.

BLITZER: It's a very, very sensitive, delicate moment to be -- to be sure, alone.

Alon, this is the beginning of what everyone accepts will be a very long, fragile process. What needs to happen? And you've studied this very, very closely. What needs to happen next so that the future phases are successful?

GREEN: I think, first of all, we all need to make sure that the ceasefire hold; that we do not see more violence in Gaza; that we see real attempts to rebuild Gaza, to allow Palestinians to control themselves in Gaza; to isolate the extremists, to isolate Hamas with -- by working with the Palestinian Authority, something that our government, unfortunately, is still refusing to do.

I think that from here, we need to also see real negotiations for -- for peace, because, you know, Trump is right, that he says that for too many centuries, not only the two years, for too many centuries, we've been dealing with a very unfortunate reality, a very violent reality.

But the only way to really solve it is not just to have a ceasefire, which is important, but to really end occupation in the West Bank and the occupation in Gaza. And the reality of apartheid.

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You know, Palestinians are living without citizenship in their own country. They live under the Israeli occupation.

So, if we don't want to see the ceasefire collapse, if we don't want to see us coming back to another 7th of October, another genocidal war in Gaza, we need to really move towards peace. We need to really demand our leadership in Israel to do whatever we can to end this occupation, to end this very bloody chapter in our history.

And that means, really allowing ourselves to let go of the violence, to let go of the feeling that we need to control everyone on this land, because another reality is possible. And look at the happiness that we're experiencing today. That can be million times more if we will really go towards Israeli-Palestinian peace.

BLITZER: Prime Minister Netanyahu, Alon, is calling for unity among Israelis during this moment. Very sensitive moment. Do you see the country moving towards a more unified position, because there have been very serious debates in Israel throughout this process?

GREEN: In one sentence, he's saying that he's calling for unity. In the other sentence, in another post, he's calling us traitors because of going for demonstrations for two years, demanding to bring back the hostages and ending the war.

Unfortunately, the real source of violence in our society, the real source of dispute and hatred in our country, is the extremists that are in power. The extremists that are even portraying the families of the hostages as traitors, as people that are, are not really fighting for the Israeli interests.

And I want to say it very clear: the Israeli interest is to end occupation. The Israeli interest is to remove the extremists from power, to remove Netanyahu from power. We had enough of -- of his hatred and his ability to twist everything around his own personal interests.

I think Israel needs to also be free of Netanyahu. Not only the Palestinians. I think that this is a moment that we need to call for elections. And that we need to see a new leadership, a young leadership, a leadership of people that are holding the interests of the Israeli people and understanding that these interests of the Israeli people is intertwined with the interests of the Palestinian people.

BLITZER: The next scheduled Israeli elections are in October of next year, but there could be earlier elections if the Netanyahu government falls apart. We'll see what happens.

Alon-Lee Green, thanks very much for joining us. We'll continue this conversation with you --

GREEN: Thank you.

BLITZER: -- down the road. In the meantime, I want to go back to Sara Sidner, who's monitoring a lot of other developments in New York for us right now.

Sara, update our viewers.

SIDNER: Yes. It's good to be here with you, Wolf. Thank you so much.

Still to come, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is one of many world leaders arriving in Egypt now, ahead of a summit to discuss Gaza's future past phase one. More on that when we return.

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BLITZER: Israelis are packing what's called Hostage Square here in Tel Aviv. Lots of excitement, lots of emotion as some 20 Israeli hostages are about to come home. We're watching all of this very closely.

Jeremy Diamond is watching it from an Israeli military base not far from Gaza in Southern Israel. And I take it, Jeremy, all of a sudden, helicopters are -- have been seen flying over Re'im, landing at Re'im. And it's possible they'll be -- start bringing hostages there. Is that right?

DIAMOND: Yes, Wolf, this is one of the first signs that we are really getting underway, getting closer to the moment when those Israeli hostages will be released from the Gaza Strip after more than two years of captivity.

An Israeli military transport helicopter just landed here at the Re'im base. You may be able to see it just over my left shoulder here, although there's some onlookers that may be in the way.

But we just saw this helicopter come down and land at this location. This is the same spot where I saw helicopters landing back in January during the last ceasefire when we saw hostage releases then, as well.

These are the helicopters that we anticipate will be taking those hostages from this Re'im military base, alongside one or two of their closest family members to the hospitals in central Israel, where they will, of course, receive all the treatment that they need, but also be reunited with additional family members.

And in fact, I'm just starting to hear another helicopter that seems to be coming in. It's not yet in view. But keep in mind that there are 20 hostages expected to be released today. In fact, Hamas's al-Qassam Brigades has just released the names of all 20 of those hostages set to be released.

And this is the largest single release of living hostages that we have seen in one given day over the course of this two-year war. And that, of course, requires some more logistical preparations and perhaps some additional helicopters, as well, which is, again, what I'm starting to hear overhead.

I'll let you know when that helicopter approaches, but you may start to hear the sound of those rotors as this helicopter comes closer again to this Re'im military base where these hostages will be reunited with their families.

And I'm just going to ask my cameraman, Tom, to pan over here, because it's -- it's coming right over my head now. It's about to circle, most likely, and make its way to the Re'im base. But we're starting to see one of these additional again, Israeli military transport helicopters arriving here.

This is the same flight path that that other helicopter took. It kind of circles the base briefly, and then we expect it to land in this field right next to the other helicopter.

But preparations very much underway, Wolf. And we've also seen in Gaza these Red Cross busses that are starting to arrive there, as well, in order to secure the -- the Israeli hostages who will be released by Hamas's al-Qassam Brigades.

They will then board those busses, be brought to Israeli military lines of control, where they will be taken in vehicles, we expect, to this Re'im base.

[00:25:09]

There are contingencies also underway, should these hostages be severely wounded or severely ill, for them to be immediately medically evacuated to hospitals from inside the Gaza Strip. We will see all of this begin to be underway in just the next couple of hours, Wolf.

BLITZER: And as in previous instances, the hostages, as you correctly point out, will be handed over by Hamas to representatives from the International Red Cross. And they, in turn, will hand over the hostages to Israel.

This is the process that's about to begin right now. Very dramatic, very emotional process that we'll be watching every step of the way.

Jeremy Diamond at the Re'im military base. And you'll get that first look, once the hostages arrive there. Jeremy, thank you very, very much.

Sara, I want to go back to you.

SIDNER: This all happening before our eyes in anticipation of the hostage release happening in a very short amount of time. Thank you so much, Wolf Blitzer, for your great reporting there in Israel.

Later today, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will co-chair a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The summit, expected to include a signing ceremony formalizing that first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement. World leaders from 20 countries are set to attend.

CNN's Nic Robertson joins us live now from Sharm El-Sheikh.

You have been watching this process for the last few days. What are you expecting to see happen as we watch with, you know, bated breath as to how this hostage release is going to go down and to see these families reunited?

And in the meantime, there's serious business to be done outside of Israel there in Sharm El-Sheikh.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. President Trump's 20-point plan needs to get some realization, some meat on the bones, if you will. Some detail to move it forward.

Everyone's been focused, rightly so, on the first phase. It's been a lot of momentum and pressure from President Trump, in particular, to -- to get this done, to get the hostage release, prisoner release, the ceasefire in place.

But now the key question is doing the next steps to lock in this ceasefire and try to translate it into -- into a lasting peace going forward.

You'll have -- well, already arrived here, the British prime minister, Keir Starmer; Antonio Guterres, U.N. secretary-general. Expecting the British -- rather the French, the Spanish, the Italian, the German heads of state to be here as well. Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, will be here also. Emiratis Saudis, the Qataris will be here. The Turkish leader, Erdogan will be here. There'll be the Indonesian president, the significant leader from Pakistan will be coming, all coming here to try to take that momentum of phase one, turn it into phase two, keep President Trump engaged.

But there's one thing you won't see here. You're not going to see a handshake between the principal protagonists, between the Israelis and Hamas. Neither of them are going to be represented here.

And if we think of the sort of monumental steps forward in Mideast peace which this day is akin to in many ways, go back to, under President Jimmy Carter's leadership, Anwar Sadat, the Egyptian president, shaking hands with Menachem Begin, the prime minister of Israel. Back in 1978, monumental moment in Mideast peace.

1993 at the White House, President Bill Clinton there watching Yitzhak Rabin, the Israeli prime minister, shaking hands with Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader of the PLO.

These were moments that marked a significant step in peace in the region.

There will be no handshake between those protagonists, and the reason is they are still so far apart. And that's why this summit today, the momentum going into phase two, the international stabilization force -- Who's in it? How big is it? What mandate does it have? The -- Israel expects it to disarm Hamas, demilitarize the whole of the Gaza zone.

All of those key details we may learn more about at this summit today.

SIDNER: Our Nic Robertson with his great reporting from Sharm El- Sheikh there. Thank you so much.

Let's go now to Danny Danon, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations. He joins me now from New York.

First of all, we have heard President Trump, who is on his way there to Israel, say that the war is over, and asked again and again, he's unequivocal about that. Is that how you view this moment?

DANNY DANON, ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: Thank you for having me, Sara.

So, first stage is taking action as we speak. We expect the hostages to arrive very soon and to complete the first phase.

[00:30:07]

But the complicated phase is the second one. So, we hope that, you know, we will go according to the plan and we will see disarmament of Hamas. And we will see a new culture arising in Gaza. But it will take time.

So we -- we will be very happy to see a new era in the region. But we will take it very cautiously, very carefully.

But today, today, we are focused on the hostages. For two years we fought to bring them back. We were isolated. We were attacked. We were condemned, but we always said this war will not end when the hostages are still in Gaza.

That's why today, we are grateful for President Trump and his team for putting everything together. But also, we are grateful for our troops, our soldiers who fought very hard to make sure we can get to this day.

SIDNER: Ambassador Danon, it does sound like you are not exactly on the same page that the war is over, because there are more than -- there's more than one phase to this.

What are your concerns going forward as you -- you see what is happening here? And there is this meeting that is set to happen in Sharm El-Sheikh with more than 20 countries coming together to try to hammer out the phase two part.

Do you think it's a real problem that Hamas nor Israel representation will be there?

DANON: No, I think, you know, President Trump deserves the credit for what he achieved. And I think the involvement of international partners is crucial.

You know -- you know, think about Gaza, 2 million people. You need to govern them, to reconstruct many parts of Gaza. And the most challenging part is the de-radicalization of -- of the -- of the Gazan people and culture.

So, it will require international efforts. And I think the very fact that you have Arab leaders, moderate Arab countries that are willing to participate in the next phase, it's crucial. Because they should be involved in making sure that you have law and order in Gaza and making sure that Hamas is not really gaining its power.

You know, Hamas said that they are willing to give away their arms and not to be involved in the government of Gaza in the future. But we will have to watch it very carefully to see the interaction between the international force and the Hamas terrorists who are left. Many of them have died, but some of them are still there.

SIDNER: Yes, there has been some skepticism from those who have been watching this region for many, many years. The experts who have been looking at what could happen about this international force and who it would be comprised of.

Are you concerned about that and how difficult it would be, being that Israel still has a major military presence there in -- in more than half of Gaza? And we are seeing images of Hamas back out on the streets, reasserting control in parts of Gaza that do not have Israeli -- members of the Israeli military there. And, you know, who are sort of trying to reassert their -- their power in some areas.

DANON: You know, Sara, I don't know if you have shown the horrible picture of Hamas terrorists shooting Palestinians in the streets from the last 24 hours.

But, you know, when you look at the plan, you know, you have phases. We are still in Gaza, because we want to make sure, we want to guarantee that you actually see that Hamas is not continuing to gain control over the aid and over the population. That's why we are still there.

We will look at very carefully on what's happening on the ground. And I think not only us. I think also the -- the mediators who are very involved and constructive will do everything in their power to make sure that Hamas is actually moving out of the game.

Because if Hamas will stay in Gaza, there will be no peace, and there will be no future for the people in Gaza.

SIDNER: Danny Danon, thank you so much for joining us on this momentous day. We've been looking at pictures of Re'im, where we know that families have been heading towards, if not there already. You are seeing a huge crowd of people now outside of that military base.

And our Jeremy Diamond reporting, in just the last ten minutes or so, that helicopters have been coming in. Those helicopters expecting to take the hostages after they have been able to meet their loved ones, their family members; take them up in, out, towards the hospitals that are awaiting them to do a full assessment of the 20 hostages that remain alive.

We will bring you more on this ahead, including the aid trucks that are finally entering Gaza. We will take a quick break, and we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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BLITZER: I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting live from Tel Aviv. I want to get some more right now on the breaking news, historic news unfolding, the anticipated release of the remaining hostages being held in Gaza.

A source says the hostages' families have now been told that Israel expects the releases to begin at 8 a.m. local time here in Israel. That's less than 30 minutes or so from now.

The hostages are set to arrive at the Re'im Israeli military base after crossing the border, and that's where their families are gathering right now. This, according to the Hostages and the [SIC] Missing Families Forum.

And it comes as the U.S. president, Donald Trump, is currently on his way here to Israel. He's expected to meet with the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as family members of the hostages. And also, he will address Israel's parliament, the Knesset.

Before President Trump left the U.S. on Sunday, he defended Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has faced serious, very strong criticism here in Israel for prolonging the war. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Has he made commitments to you personally about moving forward to the next phase of peace?

TRUMP: Look, let me tell you, he's a wartime president. He did a very good job. I had some disputes with him, and they were quickly settled. I can tell you that.

But as far as I'm concerned, I think he's done a great job. I think he was the right person at this time.

[00:40:00]

You know, look, it's been -- it's been this way for centuries. You know, we're not talking about for ten years, for five. It's been this way for centuries. And he did a great job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The United Nations says -- and I'm quoting now -- "Real progress is being made in the humanitarian operations across Gaza right now."

Since the ceasefire took effect, hundreds of thousands of meals have already been distributed to displaced families in Gaza. You can see desperate Palestinians climbing onto aid trucks throughout Gaza.

The U.N. confirmed Israel has approved additional shipments. Dozens of aid trucks are lining up in Egypt, waiting for the signal to enter Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.

The U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says it plans to reach and assist nearly every resident of Gaza in the coming days.

Let's hope that happens.

And joining us now, live, for more on all of this is Jacob Granger, emergency coordinator in Gaza for medicine -- Medecins Sans Frontieres, also known as Doctors Without Borders.

Thanks so much for joining us.

What exactly is the aid situation like in Gaza right now when it comes to the trucks at the border, aid inside Gaza? What are you hearing? What are you seeing on the ground?

JACOB GRANGER, EMERGENCY COORDINATOR IN GAZA, MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES: What we have here is hope. We have hope, one, for ceasefire, a real one. A one that is going to be long and foreseeable.

And second, to have medical aid coming inside Gaza. We need to have some food. We need to have some water. We need to have some medical drugs.

So, this is for now, the situation. Hopefully, a system is going to be put in place. But for now, the effects are not directly to be seen inside the Strip. We need this to be sustainable and to be on the long term.

So, I think "hope" is still the word we have here.

BLITZER: As you know, Jacob, many parts of Gaza are suffering, big- time, from famine, including right now. What exactly will it take to treat all those people for malnutrition?

GRANGER: It will take stability. So, we need to be sure that, in the coming weeks, in the coming months, in the coming years, we will have the ceasefire being respected, and we will have an unimpeded and unrestricted humanitarian aid coming inside the Gaza Strip.

And then, only then, it will be possible to reach all the population of the Gaza Strip for the food, for the water, for the medical.

But there's also more. There's education. There's reconstruction.

The second word that I hear a lot here in Gaza is despair. Despair of being in a land that has been almost entirely destroyed by Israeli armed forces military operations.

BLITZER: How worried is your organization about the safety and the security of your aid workers who are moving forward right now?

GRANGER: I can tell you that we lost 15 colleagues of Gaza this past two years. The last one were the 2nd of October. I had colleagues that were living in Gaza City. And because of the Israeli military operation and because of the instruction given by Israeli government, they decided to go from Gaza City towards the South to be safe with their family.

And the 2nd of October, at 7:40, they were waiting for a bus, speaking together, going to work as every day in this place that is supposed to be safe. There was a Israeli forces strike really near from them. Two of them were killed by the strike. Three of them were and are still injured by the strike.

So, we stopped this moment where this could be open. Anyone at any moment, everywhere on the Strip. This is a relief, of course, for the population. This is a relief for me, my colleagues, and their security. But this was the situation we were facing. And it was the immense part, immense part of our work over here.

BLITZER: Well, let's hope for the best now. Jacob Granger, thanks so much for joining us.

GRANGER: You're welcome.

BLITZER: And, Sara, I want to go back to you in New York. There's other news we're following, as well.

SIDNER: Yes. That was a really important and fascinating interview that you just did there. Thank you to you, Wolf.

[00:45:04]

Let us just quickly recap what it is that we are expecting. This is breaking news.

In the next 15 minutes or so, the expectation is that we will start to get glimpses, see pictures of the 20 hostages who remain alive, being released by Hamas.

They will first be released to the Red Cross, and then they are expected to, if they need immediate medical attention, be taken out in helicopters to hospitals. And if not, they will go to Re'im, where you are seeing their video of a helicopter that is waiting for the hostages for after they meet with their loved ones, with their families who are gathering there at this very hour. This is expected to happen very shortly here.

And there are already a lot of Israelis who are outside of this military base there in Re'im, who are celebrating, who we -- who we've seen, you know, waving flags, waiting for the hostages to return, to make sure that they can see how much support that they have in Israel.

We are waiting and watching for this moment to happen. The significant moment in this ceasefire, the first phase of the ceasefire.

And in the meantime, President Trump expected to touch down there in Israel and speak with Prime Minister Netanyahu and then the hostages' families, some of the -- the people who came over, who were hostages. And also to address the Knesset. And then head to Sharm El-Sheikh, eventually, where phase two is being

worked on with 20 countries. We -- there is so much to talk about here, but this is a huge day, a hugely emotional day for the families of those 48 hostages, 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

We will give you much more on what is happening here. This is breaking news. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:50:56]

SIDNER: All right. We continue with our breaking news. In minutes, not hours, we're expecting to see a remarkable scene. The hostages being returned.

Kaitlan Collins is joining me now from Tel Aviv. Give me a sense of just what it is like being there at this moment, which is such a pivotal moment after two years plus of war.

COLLINS: Yes. I mean, Sara, you talked to a lot of the families here of these hostages, and they feel such a sense of relief. Yesterday, it was still a bit of -- of cautious optimism and a little anxiety, wanting to make sure that this release and this handover to the IDF and the Red Cross actually happens, as we are waiting carefully to see, as we expect these hostages to be released in groups starting quite soon.

And so, there's a lot of people gathered here in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv as they are watching all of this happen and kind of a sense of buzz here in Tel Aviv over the night.

Last night, I was on a walk, and I heard people talking about what was the -- what was the updated time of when these hostages were expected to be released. Because obviously, this is something that everyone here has watched closely for over two years now.

And we've spoken with some of the families of these hostages who talk about what this moment means, including I spoke to one, the family of Omri Miran, who is expected to be released this morning.

And when he was kidnapped into Gaza, left behind a six-month-old daughter and a two-year-old daughter who have grown up two years now without seeing their father or hearing his voice.

And so, just moments like that, that these families are preparing for, of what this is going to look like.

And also, for so many of these hostage families that won't be welcoming back their loved ones alive, as well. And so, certainly a bittersweet moment for them, as they've gotten quite close. And they will be meeting with President Trump as he's set to arrive here shortly after the release of these hostages begins. There was this banner that was displayed on the beach in Tel Aviv, a giant thank you, just to kind of speak to the moment, Sara, of what kind of Israel is bracing for right now as the president is expected to be here. He's only going to be here for -- for less than five hours on the ground in Jerusalem. But he'll be speaking to the members of the parliament. He'll be meeting families of hostages and hostages themselves and partaking in that as we see him also standing alongside the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

SIDNER: Yes. And we should mention that we have just now seen a personal note that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sent out in Hebrew saying, "Welcome back on behalf of the entire people of Israel. Welcome back. We waited for you. We embrace you."

And that is the message from the prime minister to those that are the 20 hostages that are alive, being brought back first. And the some 28 whose bodies will be brought back to their families.

Thank you so much, Kaitlan Collins, for your reporting there from Tel Aviv.

Let's now go to Wolf Blitzer, your colleague and mine, who is also there in Tel Aviv with you.

Hey, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Sara, thanks very much.

And we're just getting this in. I think this is significant. The military wing of Hamas, the al-Qassam Brigades, has just released the names of the 20 living Israeli hostages who are expected to be released momentarily. And the list, we are told, actually matches the list put out by Israel, as well. So, it's significant.

We'll see how these 20 hostages are released, and we'll see their condition. All that is coming up.

We're following all of these very dramatic moments here in the Middle East as the family members of the hostages held in Gaza are anxiously awaiting the return of their loved ones after two years of war.

Stay with us. You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:58:33]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

BLITZER: Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer, reporting live from Tel Aviv with CNN's special coverage of the hostage release that's underway from Gaza.

SIDNER: And I'm Sara Sidner in New York.

At any moment now, the release of the remaining Israeli hostages is set to begin, more than two years after they were taken captive by Hamas. Crowds are packing Hostage Square here -- there in Tel Aviv, and

families are anxiously awaiting to see their loved ones again.

Twenty living hostages are expected to be released to the Red Cross first. And a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office says once the hostages cross back into Israel, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees will then be released. A short time ago, Red Cross buses and cars can be seen driving there -- you see that for yourself -- into Khan Younis in Southern Gaza, ahead of the releases.

U.S. President Donald Trump heading to Israel, where he is set to meet with the prime minister and the families of hostages before addressing the Israeli parliament.

I will send it back over to you, Wolf Blitzer/ with more on this.

BLITZER: All right, Sara.

CNN correspondents, of course, are tracking all these truly historic, very emotional, dramatic developments unfolding. Kaitlan Collins is here with me in Tel Aviv. Clarissa Ward is standing by over at the Hostage Square in Tel Aviv. She's seeing family members, friends, others.