Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
Bodies of Six Hostages Recovered in Gaza; Anti-Netanyahu Protests Demand Immediate Ceasefire and Hostage Deal; Biden: "We should end this war". Anti-Netanyahu Protests, Demanding Hostages Deal Underway In Israel; Harris, Walz Are Back On The Campaign Trail This Week; 7 U.S. Troops Injured In Iraq Raid That Killed 15 ISIS Operatives; Tributes Pour In For NHL Star Johnny Gaudreau, Brother. Aired 6-7a ET
Aired September 01, 2024 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:00:00]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to CNN This morning. It is Sunday, September 1st. I'm Amara Walker.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell. Thank you for joining us. We're following breaking news out of Gaza this morning. The Israeli military says it recovered the bodies of six hostages from an underground tunnel in Gaza on Saturday.
The IDF has identified all six bodies, which include Israeli-American, Hersh Goldberg-Polin. The Israeli defense minister said the hostages were killed just before troops could reach them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REAR ADMIRAL DANIEL HAGARI, IDF SPOKESPERSON (through translator): According to the initial assessment at our disposal, they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists a short while before we reached them. They were abducted alive on the morning of October 7th by the Hamas terror organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALKER: Hamas is blaming Israel for the deaths. A Hamas spokesman said the hostages were killed by Israel's bombing of Gaza without giving specifics. Now, a group representing the families of Israeli hostages is calling for Prime Minister Netanyahu to address the nation and, quote, take responsibility for abandoning the hostages.
Netanyahu released a taped statement this morning blaming Hamas for the murders of the hostages. It accused them of not wanting a ceasefire deal. CNN's Nic Robertson joining us now live from Jerusalem with more. Nic, you're also learning some information about these hostages that some of them were actually slated for release before their bodies were found. NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, Hersh Golberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, and Carmel Gat were all slated to be released in the first phase under sort of humanitarian grounds. The first phase of release. Hersh had become a sort of a symbol, an international symbol, if you will, for the hostages, not just because of the brutal pictures that everyone saw when he was captured, he had lost his left arm, and the narrative that we learned after his capture that had happened as he was trying to sort of defend and fend off hand grenades and gunshots from Hamas.
But then, Hamas cynically and brutally used him in a propaganda hostage video in April this year where you could clearly see he had lost his left arm. Everyone in this country and I think around the world could really see what was happening to the hostages and how they were being used.
But these three were expected to be in the first phase of relief -- release. There are huge political recriminations, not just from the family of the hostages, not just even from opposition politicians here, but also even the defense minister calling on the prime minister to revisit the cabinet vote last week that many people believe shut down the possibility of getting a hostage deal through. The prime minister has given a statement and he's defended his position and is blaming Hamas for what's happening.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): In recent days, as Israel has been holding intensive negotiations with the mediator in a supreme effort to reach a deal, Hamas is continuing to steadfastly refuse all proposals. Even worse, at the exact same time, it murdered six of our hostages. Whoever murders hostages does not want a deal. For our part, we will not relent.
The government of Israel is committed, and I am personally committed, to continue striving towards a deal that will return all of our hostages and ensure our security and our existence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: But I think I should also just give you a sense of some of the heartbreak that the families are feeling. The cousin of Carmel Gat, who was visiting her family in the nearby to the Nova Music Festival, Kibbutz Be'eri. She was 40 years old. She was an occupational therapist. She saw her mother be killed in front of her eyes by Hamas before she was abducted. And her cousin wrote this letter and I just read some of it because it's so poignant and captivates the sense and the mood and the loss here.
He says, sorry, Carmel. Sorry we didn't stop it when it was possible. Sorry we let them kill you. I wish you saw unheard and I wish you even saw with your own eyes -- that I'm sorry you saw with your own eyes the murder of your mother. I wish you discovered that your father and your brother and your sister-in-law and your niece survived. I wish you saw how your friends fought to bring you alive. I wish you hadn't heard the prime minister say that the Philadelphi Corridor, the sticking point in the negotiations is more important than your life and the lives of the other hostages. I can only imagine how much rage that must have filled you with.
[06:05:00]
These are such poignant words. And of course, these are words that we're going to hear from so many family members who are absolutely devastated with the loss and the sense that not just the first three. But all of these six could have been released through negotiations, through a ceasefire deal.
WALKER: So, heart wrenching to hear, Nic Robertson, thank you very much. The families of the killed hostages are speaking out this morning after hearing the news of their loved ones.
BLACKWELL: The family of Hersh Goldberg-Polin said in a statement, with broken hearts, the Goldberg-Polin family is devastated to announce the death of their beloved son and brother, Hersh. The family thanks you all for your love and support and ask for privacy at this time.
Elliott Gotkine joins us now. Elliott, we -- most of us remember seeing his parents there at the DNC just a couple of weeks ago telling him, if you are watching, if you are listening, survive. And now, this news. What else can you tell us about these hostages?
ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Victor. Yes. You know, very poignant that his parents were so vocal and visible in their advocacy for the release, not just of their son, Hersh, but also for all of the hostages. As you say, they spoke at the Democratic National Convention. And indeed, joined what the audience all to in unison chants, you know, bring them home, which has become a refrain for the families of hostages who were kidnapped in the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of October the 7th.
The parents had met with President Joe Biden as well. And of course, you know, if anyone can remember those searing images from October the 7th, one of the ones that sticks in the mind most was that of Hersh with half of his left arm blown off, being herded onto the back of a truck and being taken in to Gaza.
Now, we have a first-hand account from one of his friends from that day, saying that they had taken refuge in a small bomb shelter as they were trying to flee from the onslaught. And as the militants were throwing hand grenades into this bomb shelter that Hersh was throwing them out. And it was in the course of throwing those grenades out of the bomb shelter to protect himself and of course the others who were in there that he suffered that injury, and that stump was visible again when he was used in that propaganda video back in April that Nic was just referring to as well.
Beyond Hersh Goldberg-Polin, of course, who was a U.S. and Israeli citizen, born in Oakland, California, moved to Israel when he was just seven years old, you have Eden Yerushalmi, a 24-year-old bartender who -- not live streamed, but was on the phone during her hours long ordeal trying to flee, to hide from the militants as they rampaged through the Nova Festival, killing, raping, and kidnapping as they went.
She spoke with her sister. She had her sisters on the phone. And her last words to her sister, Shanny (ph), was Shanny (ph), they caught me. There was Carmel Gat, 40-years-old, the only one of the six bodies who were recovered -- that were recovered on Saturday, who was not at the Nova Music Festival. She was visiting her parents at kibbutz Be'eri, just on the outskirts off the Gaza Strip. Her mother was killed that day. Her father survived. And indeed, hostages who released during the one and only hostage ceasefire deal back in November said that she was like a guardian angel to them, and she was teaching them meditation and yoga.
Then you also have Almog Sarusi, 27 years old. He was with his girlfriend of five years. She was shot and mortally wounded. He stayed with her to try and help, but then wound up being kidnapped himself and taken into the Gaza Strip. Alexander Lobanov, a 32-year-old Russian-Israeli citizen. He was a bar manager at the Nova Music Festival. He was said to have fled with -- helped others to flee to the nearby Be'eri forest to seek refuge, but they were caught. And he was taken captive as well. His wife gave birth to their second child, a boy, five months ago, a boy that he will never meet and that will never meet its father.
And then finally, there's Ori Danino, 25 years old. Who is said to have driven a number of people from the Nova Music Festival to safety in his car. And then, instead of staying in the safety that he had found, he turned back around and went back into where the militants were, into the gunfire to try to rescue more people and then wound up being kidnapped himself as well. So, those are the six.
[06:10:00]
Also worth noting that, according to the IDF, there are still more than 100 hostages who are still being held captive in the Gaza Strip, about a third of whom are believed to be dead. Victor, Amara.
WALKER: Elliott Gotkine, thank you. Joining me now to discuss this is former Pentagon adviser for the Middle East, Jasmine El-Gamal. Jasmine, I first want to get your reaction to what we've been learning through Nic Robertson's reporting that three of the six hostages who -- whose bodies have been found in these tunnels under Rafah, that they were slated to be released in this first phase of a potential deal. And that IDF saying that they were brutally murdered by Hamas just a short while before they were reached by the IDF
JASMINE EL-GAMAL, FORMER PENTAGON MIDDLE EAST ADVISER AND MIDDLE EAST ANALYST: That's right. Good morning, Amara, and thanks for having me.
And I'd like to start first by just expressing my heartfelt condolences to the families of these hostages whose bodies have been recovered. It's just the latest in a series of really heartbreaking news that's come out of Gaza and Israel over the last 10 months. It's absolutely brutal.
To your question now, it is true that reportedly some of the hostages have been slated for release. It's been reported that Hersh Goldberg- Polin was one of those names that had been approved by Hamas for release and that the deal had continued to be held up because Prime Minister Netanyahu had refused to concede on that point of having Israeli troops controlling the Gaza side of the Egypt-Gaza border, also known as the Philadelphi Corridor.
Now, it's important to remember that, ultimately, Hamas bears responsibility for taking these hostages in the first place, right? Hamas started the latest round of this conflict, this war between Israel and the group, and they are the ones who took the hostages. There's no getting around that. But the fact also is that one person has been responsible and has held the keys, if you will, to the release of the hostages, and that is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
And as Nic was saying earlier, and as you've been saying for the last few minutes, there has been unprecedented animosity and tension between the defense minister of Israel, Yoav Gallant, and the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, where Gallant has basically accused Netanyahu of choosing that Philadelphi Corridor over the hostages who could have been released and all of this could have been avoided.
WALKER: Yes. And, you know, we did get that reporting about this bitter disagreement that kind of spelled out during that security cabinet meeting on Thursday night between the defense minister, Yoav Gallant, and Netanyahu over the Philadelphi Corridor. Can you talk to us about why this is such a huge sticking point for Netanyahu and how much support he has about not giving up this corridor, at least in the first phase of any kind of ceasefire hostage release deal?
EL-GAMAL: That's right. So, one of the main things that Netanyahu is reportedly and has said that he's trying to prevent is Hamas rearming and reconstituting as a fighting force if there is to be a ceasefire, whether it's temporary or permanent. And so, Netanyahu has been trying to maintain as much control as he has over borders for -- of Gaza. You know, these borders have traditionally been used to smuggle goods and weapons and money, and he wants to prevent that from happening.
So, there is a reasoning behind him wanting to maintain control over the Philadelphia Corridor. But the reasoning has been addressed by the Egyptians in the negotiations with Hamas. They have proposed that there be a Palestinian security force on that side of the border with remote Israeli oversight. So, having the Israelis involved but not physically present on that side of the border, which is a sticking point in the negotiations on the Egyptian -- from the Egyptian perspective.
WALKER: Might that --
EL-GAMAL: So, there have --
WALKER: Sorry. Yes, because we're running out of time. I just wanted to ask this question, Jasmine, might that sticking point get a little less unsticky now, unfortunately, you know, seeing this tragedy of six bodies now being, you know, found in these tunnels? Might Netanyahu actually budge a little bit on this, given that there's also potentially mass protests that may happen? As you know, the Hostage Families Forum is calling for Israelis to mobilize out of their anger as they are blaming Netanyahu for these deaths. Do you think he might move on this a little bit?
EL-GAMAL: I think that he will have to be forced to move on this. As you saw from his statement, he's not inclined to take responsibility or to second-guess his decisions. But the pressure mounting on him now from Israeli society, from the defense minister, and the security establishment, and crucially, the Biden administration will have to step in here, Amara, and exercise some of its leverage over Netanyahu to say that this cannot be allowed to happen again.
[06:15:00]
There are a hundred more hostages that are still left, some of whom are still alive. There are obviously Palestinians in Gaza who are being killed day in and day out. And it's time for the Americans, who are really the only ones, I believe, who are going to be able to get Netanyahu in conjunction with that domestic pressure to finally make a concession on the Philadelphi Corridor and get this deal done so we don't have to see any more of this heartbreak moving forward. And that's what I hope will happen, but it will have to be forced on him. He will not succeed on his own.
WALKER: Jasmine El-Gamal, thank you.
BLACKWELL: $More breaking news in Gaza. We'll have more of the details on CNN This Morning Weekend. Israeli military says it recovered the bodies of six Hamas hostages, including an Israeli- American who was kidnapped from the Nobel Music Festival October 7th. We'll hear from his parents next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:20:00]
BLACKWELL: More on the breaking news now from the Middle East. Israel's military says the bodies of six hostages killed by Hamas have been recovered in Gaza. Israeli officials told CNN that three of the six were expected to be freed during the first phase of a planned ceasefire agreement, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
The discovery has reignited protests calling for an immediate deal to secure the release of hostages still held in Gaza. Goldberg-Polin was a California native who became a symbol of the international hostage crisis after he was taken at gunpoint at the Nova Music Festival on October 7th.
Now, at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last month, Hersh's parents made a plea deal for a ceasefire to bring their son home.
WALKER: They told the crowd that the return of the hostages wasn't about politics, but a matter of humanity.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RACHEL GOLDBERG-POLIN, MOTHER OF SLAIN HOSTAGE HERSH GOLDBERG-POLIN: Among the hostages are eight American citizens. One of those Americans is our only son. His name is Hersh.
JOHN HERSH GOLDBERG-POLIN, FATHER OF SLAIN HOSTAGE HERSH GOLDBERG- POLIN: This is a political convention. But needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALKER: The family of the 23-year-old posted on Facebook after learning of his death and wrote this, quote, with broken hearts, the Goldberg-Polin family is devastated to announce the death of their beloved son and brother, Hersh. The family thanks you all for your love and support and asks for privacy at this time.
Make sure to stay with us. We'll take you back to Israel, where the military says it has recovered the bodies of six hostages, including an Israeli-American who was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival on October 7th.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:25:00]
BLACKWELL: More breaking news coverage now with Israeli military saying it has recovered the bodies of six hostages. The IDF said that they were killed by Hamas militants in Gaza and one of the victims was Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAGARI (through translator): According to the initial assessment at our disposal, they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists a short while before we reached them. They were abducted alive on the morning of October 7th by the Hamas terror organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALKER: Demonstrations have already begun in Israel with many demanding an immediate ceasefire deal. President Biden spoke from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware last night after being briefed that the bodies of the hostages had been found. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: And it's time this war ended. We should end this war. I think we're on the verge of having an agreement. It's just time to end it. It's time to finish it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALKER: Let's get right to CNN International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson in Jerusalem. Nic, I guess the next question is how will the deaths, the killings of these hostages, including this Israeli- American affect the negotiations?
ROBERTSON: It's hard to say at the moment, but I think what is incredibly clear is the deaths of these six hostages, apparently not long before the IDF could reach them and rescue them really just gets to the heart of the pain of the divisions in this country. Those that say Prime Minister Netanyahu could have by now cut a deal that would have seen them released and those who say that he should just keep going with these hard tactics of going after Hamas.
And it gets to that issue in so many ways and then it's a divisive issue. And that's why now we're seeing so many senior leading opposition figures join the hostage families in calling for protest, calling for boycotts, essentially calling to bring the country to a standstill. It's why you're seeing the prime minister's defense minister criticize his decisions about how is handling the negotiations. Call for the cabinet to revisit the issue.
How does it affect the negotiations? Well, at the moment it appears that this is a very clear signal from Hamas, and I say appears. because we don't have the details of how these six died precisely or precisely when, but this clearly seems to indicate that Hamas is playing hard ball, even harder ball than it was previously.
It has said that Israel has been intransigent. It has said that it supports the peace proposal that the United States put forward, not the recent one. And -- and if this -- if these killings were a response or reaction to the stall out of that process, then this cause huge out over -- over progress that the peace talks can make at the moment, because it's unlikely this current prime minister will change his mind.
And that's why there's so much protest, because they want to get that people 62 percent of the country want to get the hostages back and they see the only path to that at the moment is to change the Prime Minister and that is not immediately it appears on the card.
So right now, the short answer to your question is it appears that they're stalling out.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Nic, you -- you mentioned briefly there what the families of these hostages have been saying. We are getting some formal statements from them. They've been coming out since the news broke about the bodies discovered.
What are they saying?
ROBERTSON (on-camera): They're saying that the issue that the country is so divided on, that is just make a deal with Hamas to get the hostages out and if you need to go back to war again, then go back to war after. But the hostages should be the primary concern of the Prime Minister. And they are saying that this has not been the case, that the Prime Minister is in essence putting his own political career and political survival ahead of the families of the hostages.
And it's not just ahead of the lives of the hostages. And it's not just the hostages' families that are saying that. The Prime Minister's own defense minister accused him of that in the cabinet session just a couple of days ago.
So, the families are really doubling down and calling for people to come out and protest. Remember that there are perhaps more than 60 hostages potentially still alive, all with families. Only a tiny group of those back the Prime Minister, the vast majority, are making very clear in their statements, they want the people of Israel to come out and support them so that they will have a chance to get their loved ones back alive.
AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: You know, over the past few months, also today, we've been seeing these anti-Netanyahu protests breaking out. We know that the hostage families forum is blaming the Prime Minister for the deaths of these hostages, saying that it was the delay in getting a deal done.
I'm just curious in terms of the pressure Netanyahu is facing, Nic. I mean, how widespread is this anger? How much pressure is he facing from the country? Would you say a majority of the country does not support the Prime Minister, or is that hard to tell?
ROBERTSON (on-camera): The latest polling says about two-thirds of the country doesn't support the Prime Minister. They do not support the Prime Minister. The calls, I mean, look at the level of division that it comes right down to the some of the key players in this, between the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister, and to a strong degree his heads of intelligence, the Shin Bet and the Mossad, who have been doing the negotiations. You have that division there.
But Yair Golan, an opposition leading figure, telling people that this is the moment to come out on the streets with the unions and protest to help bring the country to a standstill.
Yair Lapid, another leading politician in the opposition, telling people to come out and protest on the streets, gather in Tel Aviv tonight for a big protest. You have Benny Gantz, who was in Netanyahu's war cabinet, who left that war cabinet because he didn't agree with the way the Prime Minister is handling negotiations, who has gone back to being a leading opposition figure, who said -- released a statement earlier today accusing the Prime Minister saying, you called these other hostages who were freed, now call the families of these six and listen to what they have to say. That's the mood.
WALKER: Will this be a breaking point for the country? Will Netanyahu actually pivot in terms of his strategy? We will see.
Nic Robertson, thank you so much.
We're just 65 days now from the presidential election. Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate Tim Walz kick off their nationwide Fighting for Reproductive Freedom bus tour this week right in the former president Donald Trump's new hometown.
We'll have the latest. Still ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:39:11]
WALKER: Right now, protesters in Israel demanding a deal to release the remaining Israeli hostages. This comes after Israeli military officials say six hostages were, quote, brutally murdered in Gaza, including young Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
Israeli officials tell CNN he and two others would have been among the first to be freed as part of ceasefire negotiations. As the news broke Saturday night, President Joe Biden told reporters that negotiators are on the verge of an agreement.
And early this morning, Vice President Kamala Harris released a statement saying she holds no higher priority than the safety Americans everywhere, and that both she and Biden are staying committed to bringing home those held hostage in Gaza.
BLACKWELL: The Vice President will likely face questions about ongoing tensions in the Middle East as she hits the campaign trail again this week.
[06:40:03]
CNN's Arit John joins us now. Good morning to you.
So, Harris, of course, will face some questions. Support for Israel and support for Palestinians has been something that Democrats have tried to balance. She touched on it during the DNC. How will she likely address it on the campaign trail?
ARIT JOHN, CNN REPORTER (on-camera): That's exactly right. Like, Harris has really tried to balance, like, talking about the suffering that's been happening in Gaza, but as well as the need to like Israel's right to defend itself and the need to bring back the hostages.
And so, I believe in the coming weeks after this, you know, terrible tragedy, we're going to see her continue to focus on there needs to be a deal, the hostages need to be brought back, especially the American hostages, and I think we're going to really see her focus on how to end this war as quickly as possible.
BLACKWELL: Now, Harris and Governor Walz, they are on the campaign trail together Tuesday, kicking off their Reproductive Rights Bus Tour. Talk about that, the strategy here.
JOHN (on-camera): I think that Vice President Harris has really been sort of at the forefront of talking about abortion rights and reproductive rights in this campaign even before she became the nominee. And so now that she's -- she and Governor Walz are running, I think we're really going to see them double down on this strategy.
And especially, you know, this tour is starting in Florida. Florida has a six-week abortion ban. There is going to be a ballot initiative in November sort of trying to make this -- to put in a constitutional right to abortion. And so, really, by starting in Florida, they're sort of saying, this is an issue that we think will make Florida competitive again. This is an issue that they think will help them in all of these key battleground states. I mean, we've seen polling that has shown that, especially for young women, abortion is a key issue.
And I think this whole strategy is about organizing, getting people excited to vote, and just reminding people that this is an issue that's on the ballot.
BLACKWELL: Also, an opportunity for the campaign to exploit the last several days of the RNC and the Republican candidates having some difficulty settling on a single message as it relates to a federal abortion ban and IVF.
Arit John, thank you so much for being with us.
WALKER: New this morning, we're learning new details about the raid in Iraq that killed 15 ISIS operatives. It also left seven U.S. troops hurt. While all are stable, defense officials tell CNN that one was evacuated for further treatment.
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is tracking the raid, targeting ISIS operatives.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, we are hearing more details from the Iraqi military as to exactly what happened in, frankly, the middle of the Anbar Desert in western Iraq in the early hours of Thursday morning, only coming to light on Saturday through this American statement.
Now, the Iraqis referred to how this month operation took two months in the preparation of intelligence and targeting and how they were after four specific hideouts in that area. This is a pretty sparsely populated part of Iraq. Mostly desert, as far as we can tell. And they seem to say that these hideouts were indeed camouflaged, suggesting possibly some sort of camp.
Now, this was hit by airstrikes at 4 o'clock in the morning, local time on Thursday, followed up by, it seems, the airborne insertion of troops. Quite likely there were Americans involved in this raid because of the injuries we're hearing about. That, the Iraqis say, led to 14 dead, one less than the American statement suggests, and that the ISIS fighters there were found with explosive belts and hand grenades.
Now, they appear to have been the Iraqis following this raid up early Saturday morning at 4:00 a.m., arriving at the site to sort of look at the damage, do an assessment. And that resulted in two further people being arrested early Saturday morning as well, who appear to have been trying to leave that area with important documents. The American statement, more sparse, referring to the seven injured and how two of those required further care. And, in fact, two of the seven having fallen during the operation, perhaps not wounded as part of combat there. But frankly, this is clearly an example of an American raid with the Iraqis that did not go as according to plan and a sign, I think, of how ferocious ISIS can still be in certain parts of Iraq and, indeed, Syria as well. In fact, CENTCOM recently have warned that defeat ISIS missions over the past six months, the first six months of 2024, causing 44 ISIS operatives to be killed and 166 detained. And the majority of those operations in Syria, but the majority of the ISIS dead operatives in Iraq.
So, clearly, 2019, with the fall of Baghuz and the remnants of the caliphate, has not heralded the end of the ISIS threat in either Iraq or Syria, which continues, obviously, here, with the Americans warning that they are at this pace looking to double, potentially, the number of ISIS operations they do compared to the same period in the previous year.
[06:44:58]
Why? Well, clearly, there has been an issue in Iraq and Syria where the defeat of the caliphate itself was not followed through with lengthy political settlements or a bid to try and remove the societal grievances that allowed the warped version of Islamism that
is ISIS to take root in Iraq and Syria.
And so, they appear to have found space to regroup, the repeated deaths through U.S. operations of ISIS leaders. There's been a pause now, Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi in charge for a reasonable period of time, with some analysts suggesting that has enabled some elements of stability and regrouping.
But we see ISIS at times through ISIS-K or other groups associated with threats in Europe, often from teenagers, singular actors. It often seems unclear their relationship to the group in the Middle East, but the Biden administration often suggesting that terrorism essentially is used to be a threat 10 years ago is now mostly under control. Yet we see in Central Asia, at times in Russia, at times at singular moments in Europe, the persistent notion of the ISIS branding, having traction with some individuals in instances like this in Iraq and Syria, a reminder of how they retain an operating space in the Middle East still.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALKER: Tributes pouring in this morning as a hockey world mourns the death of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his younger brother Matthew. Killed in a crash just days before their sister's wedding.
The new statement from their family after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:50:57] WALKER: The tributes have been pouring in this morning as the hockey world mourns the death of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his younger brother Matthew.
BLACKWELL: Both men were killed by a suspected drunk driver. They were riding their bikes in New Jersey Thursday night, the day before their sister's wedding.
CNN's Gloria Pazmino brings us the latest from the family and on the investigation.
Gloria?
GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): Well, Victor, Amara fans have been laying flowers and bringing their jerseys and their hockey sticks to Nationwide Arena. That's the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets, where Johnny Gaudreau played.
We also heard from the widow of Johnny for the first time she posted on Instagram. She shared several photos of them on their two young children, and she talked about their relationship, their love for one another. She said that Johnny was the best dad in the world and that the year she had spent with him were the best years of her life.
Now, Johnny and his brother Matthew were killed on Thursday by an alleged a drunk driver. Adding to the tragedy of this whole thing is that Johnny and his brother were scheduled to participate as groomsmen in their sister's wedding the following morning. This family is now planning a funeral instead of being able to celebrate a wedding.
We heard from the uncle of Johnny, Jim Gaudreau, who issued a statement saying in part that they had lost two husbands, two fathers, two sons, two brothers, two cousins, two family members, and two teammates, but really just two amazing humans, he wrote. He said he wanted to let everyone know that they are receiving their messages of love and support and that they appreciate their continued thoughts and prayers.
Now, Gaudreau had earned his nickname Johnny Hockey, not just because of how he acted while he was on the ice, but because of how he behaved while he was not at the games. He connected with the community in Columbus, Ohio. He connected with the fans who ultimately said that they felt like Johnny was one of them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You definitely could tell that he was, he was happy and in a good place when, you know, he saw him with his daughter. So, yes, I've been thinking about them a lot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He loved Columbus, spoke highly of Columbus. He wanted to raise his family here. He talked about that all the time. And so, as a community, I felt it was important for him to -- for us to back him up and show him support and his family support.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And Johnny was so important to Columbus and so important to the hockey community. Just wanted to take a walk down here and pay our respects.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAZMINO (on-camera): Johnny Gaudreau, an incredible talent, both on and off the ice. A seven-time NHL all start, he played in 763 games, scoring more than 200 goals and 500 assists. And he is certainly going to be missed the sports community, the hockey community all in morning and fans still grappling with this loss.
Now, 43-year-old Sean Higgins is the man accused of driving the car that killed Johnny and his brother. He is currently charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, and he admitted to having been drinking on the night of the accident.
Higgins is currently in custody and is scheduled to appear back in court next week.
Victor, Amara.
BLACKWELL: All right, Gloria, thank you.
Our coverage of the news in Gaza ahead on the next hour of "CNN This Morning Weekend."
Israeli military says it recovered the bodies of six Hamas hostages, including an Israeli-American who was kidnapped from that Nova music festival on October 7th.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:59:16]
BLACKWELL: Good morning and welcome to "CNN This Morning." It's Sunday, September 1st. I'm Victor Blackwell.
WALKER: And I'm Amara Walker. Thank you so much for being with us.
We are following breaking news out of Gaza this morning. The Israeli military says it has recovered the bodies of six hostages from an underground tunnel in Gaza Saturday. The IDF has identified all six bodies, which include Israeli-American Hersch Goldberg-Polin. An IDF spokesman said the hostages were killed just before their troops could reach them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANIEL HAGARI, IDF SPOKESMAN: According to the initial assessment at our disposal, they were brutally murdered by Hamas's terrorists a short while before we reached them. They were abducted alive on the morning of October 7th by the Hamas terror organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[07:00:01]
BLACKWELL: Hamas is blaming Israel for the deaths. A Hamas spokesman said the hostages were killed by Israel's bombing of Gaza without giving specifics --
