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Emotional Scenes As Freed Hostages Reunite With Families; Donald Trump And Regional Leaders Sign Gaza Ceasefire Deal; Donald Trump Threatens To Give Ukraine Tomahawk Missiles; Vladimir Putin Warns This Would Be "New Stage Of Escalation"; Trump, Regional Leaders Sign Gaza Ceasefire Deal; Israel Releases About 2,000 Palestinian Prisoners and Detainees; Trump Sidesteps on Palestinian Statehood After Gaza Deal; Deadly Flooding Leaves Dozen Missing in Mexico. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired October 14, 2025 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:39]
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: Well, hello and welcome to our viewers from around the world. Wherever you are watching, you are more than welcome. I'm Becky Anderson, live from Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt.
U.S. President Donald Trump is declaring an end to the war in Gaza and a new beginning for the Middle East after signing the Gaza deal during a summit right here in Egypt. His trip to the region coinciding with the first phase of the agreement that saw the release of all living Israeli hostages and the freeing of hundreds of Palestinian detainees.
Still, though many questions remain, and the future of Gaza is far from certain. The second, more complex phase, if you will, of his plan, which would involve dismantling Hamas and determining the enclave's governance, is yet to be negotiated.
For now, though, there is relief in Israel as all living hostages are back home. So far, only four of the 28 deceased hostages were released. Israeli security forces could be seen saluting vehicles carrying their remains on Monday.
Well, President Trump traveled here to Egypt after stopping in Israel to meet with the families of hostages, and he delivered an address to Parliament. It was here in Sharm El-Sheikh that he cohosted a Gaza summit attended by more than 20 nations. The U.S. president declined to directly address whether he supports recognizing a Palestinian state, as he and other leaders took part in a signing ceremony for what could, I guess, be described as a vision for Gaza and peace in the Middle East.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We listened and we exchanged ideas, and we kept pushing forward until the job was done, and the first steps to peace are always the hardest. And today, we've taken them and we've put them all together, and we've come up with this beautiful mix like nobody thought was possible.
And as you know, I've just come from Israel, it was an amazing day to watch the hostages come in. It will be the new beginning for an entire beautiful Middle East.
From this moment forward, we can build a region that's strong and stable and prosperous and united in rejecting the path of terror once and for all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, for the first time in more than two years, Hamas and its allies no longer hold any living hostages in Gaza. Their release triggering an outpouring of emotion across Israel and leading to long awaited reunions with family.
CNN's Clarissa Ward with this report from Tel Aviv.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two years of anguish and agony finally giving way to joy. For the mother of 23-year-old hostage Bar Kuperstein taken at the Nova Music Festival on October 7th, this was the hug she had dreamed of. Bar's paralyzed father is helped out of his wheelchair so he can finally hold his son amid wails of raw emotion.
For hostage, Segev Kalfon, even the sight of his family was all too much, scenes of tearful reunions between the final 20 living Israeli hostages and their families punctuated this historic day. Your home, your home, the mother of 24-year-old guy, Gilboa-Dalal cries and disbelief.
In Hostages Square the beating heart of the movement to bring them home, tens of thousands of Israelis gathered from the early hours singing HaBayta or coming home.
The crowds cheered as the first images of the hostages emerged before their release, surreal scenes of them calling their loved ones as Hamas militants stood in the background.
After reuniting with their immediate families at Reim military base, they were flown to hospitals looking down at the crowds gathered to welcome them home.
[02:05:08]
WARD: You can hear the crowd cheering as you see those hostages traveling by a helicopter. This is a moment that these people have been waiting for for 737 days.
WARD (voice-over): In Gaza, they have known the pain of waiting too.
The pause erupted as some 1,700 Palestinian detainees emerged from crammed busses outside the Nasser Hospital in Hali unis held without charge by Israel throughout the war, they waved to the crowds tearful. Some return to the worst possible news. This man learned that his wife and daughters were killed in an Israeli air strike. My wife and my children, my family is gone, he says, clutching a birthday gift for his 2-year-old daughter.
For many in Gaza, Joy still feels like a distant dream. Scale of loss and destruction leaves little room for it. And as Israel turns the page on a very dark chapter, Gaza is opening a new and uncertain one.
Clarissa Ward, CNN, Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, it's now 9:00 in the morning the day after the night before, as it were. Yesterday, I spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty ahead of Monday's summit here where the cease fire deal, or the declaration, the vision, the goal, as it were, was signed. He says the deal is clear in regard to the major issues, but there are many important details he says that still need to be negotiated. Here's part of our conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BADR ABDELATTY, EGYPTIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: The Hamas understand very well that they have no role for the day after.
ANDERSON: What about disarming? You've got a commitment from Hamas to disarm.
ABDELATTY: Yes. We have to start talking and negotiating on that, about the modalities, the format, you know, the procedures and everything is subject to the upcoming negotiations after implementing phase one.
ANDERSON: So, Hamas is committed to laying down its arms? We've got that commitment.
ABDELATTY: Hamas is fully committed that they have no role for the day after in governing Gaza. And of course, it's, you know, the debate is ongoing to talk about the other aspects of the Trump peace plan, and we have also not to forget the crucial of the entry and accessibility of humanitarian aid without any impediments. We agreed on the minimal numbers, and that's not the maximum, that's not the ceiling.
ANDERSON: And I want to talk to you about aid, but I'm going to press you on this point. Do you have a commitment from Hamas, and you've been involved, deeply involved, in the mediation of this, alongside Qatar and Turkey? Have you got commitment from Hamas to disarm?
ABDELATTY: This part of the Trump peace plan. And Hamas welcomed and accepted the plan of President Trump. So, we have to work out all details with regard to implementation of phase two, including Israeli withdrawal to another lines within Gaza.
And of course, each party should honor his own commitment. ANDERSON: Foreign Minister, it does sound to me as if at present, whilst Hamas have welcomed the plan and accepted the plan in principle, there is no commitment as of yet to disarm, certainly, until there is a process. Is that what you're saying?
ABDELATTY: Well, again, the plan is very clear, you know, set the tone with regard major issues, and we have to implement it.
In order to implement it, we need to negotiate between the two parties with the help of the four guarantors, the United States, Egypt, Turkey and Qatar.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, Alon Liel is a former Director General of the Israeli foreign affairs ministry. And I'm delighted to say that he joins me now from Herzliya in Israel. It's good to have you.
You know, we've witnessed the sense of joy and relief for so many, very specifically the hostage families who did get their loved ones returned yesterday alive. Obviously, still some concern about where the deceased are and just how quickly those bodies will be returned.
[02:10:07]
Donald Trump would have us believe that what was signed here in Egypt yesterday was the end of the war in Gaza. Frankly, that is the goal. And it's, you know, a goal that we should applaud, but we won't see an end without that disarmament of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli troops, who today, as we speak, occupy more than 50 percent of the Strip. What are the risks here?
ALON LIEL, FORMER DIRECTOR GENERAL, ISRAELI FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTRY: As I see, we just had stage one almost completed. Lots of joy in Israel. Lots of hugs to the president.
Stage two will be more difficult, as you said, ending the war and building new leadership for Gaza, but I think we are all aiming, or at least President Trump and the other mediators are aiming at stage three and pushing the sides into the negotiating room to achieve peace, even if we achieve phase two, and we stabilize the situation in Gaza and we stop there, not much was achieved, because at the moment, the sides not even in Sharm El-Sheikh and cannot enter the same room, and did not sign yesterday's agreement, so we still have a long way to go.
ANDERSON: Why didn't Benjamin Netanyahu come yesterday? As we understand it, he got an invite.
LIEL: The technical explanation was the holiday, and indeed, we have a holiday. And you know, he has religious parties in the coalition, it could be a problem.
But I think the invitation of Abu Mazen and the fact that he would probably have to shake the hand of Abu Mazen and probably also the opposition of President of Turkey, Erdogan. So, there were a combination of reasons. It was quite strange to see
the form mediators signing the agreement when the sides are not there at all.
ANDERSON: Yes. On his way back to Washington, Donald Trump, once again, sidestepped the question of Palestinian statehood, saying, and I quote him here, we'll have to see. But here's what the Egyptian Foreign Minister told me ahead of that summit, have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELATTY: We have to move, you know, step by step, phase by phase, but from our point of view, we understand this region very well, and the only guarantee, the only way for having peace and stability for Israel and for the region, the establishment of the Palestinian state and independent and viable Palestinian state to live in peace and harmony with Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Yes, widely echoed here in region, in Europe, and we saw those European countries declaring Palestinian state at the United Nations recently widely echoed around the world.
How do these leaders get Trump to a position of committing to a Palestinian state, and is it even possible under this Israeli government? Because ultimately, this is at the core of the issue.
LIEL: I think it's a key question. I think that the diplomatic tsunami that Israel faced in the last few weeks, especially since Macron and MBS from Saudi Arabia, started their initiative, in the 10 recognitions of Palestine that included Britain, France, Canada and Australia made a difference.
I think the new plan of President Trump relied to a big extent to this background that was prepared by the international community. Everything this pressure forced the sides, especially Israel, to agree to this agreement. That the issue now is if this pressure will disappear or not.
And I hope it will not disappear, because if the sides will not feel the pressure of the mediators, Israel, the United States and Hamas, the other mediators, we will not be able to proceed.
ANDERSON: I also want your thoughts on the stunning moment where Donald Trump called for a preemptive pardon for Netanyahu. Have a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[02:15:06]
TRUMP: Mr. President, why don't you give him a pardon? Give him a pardon. By the way, that was not in the speech, as you probably know.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ANDERSON: Now, there are those around this region who, frankly, want to see beyond Benjamin Netanyahu. They worry that, you know, his government will bury this issue of Palestinian statehood again. So, just from your perspective, what's next for Benjamin Netanyahu, sir?
LIEL: I think this is not the key question, because if you saw what happened in the Knesset yesterday, and especially the speech of the head of the opposition, there are no big ideological differences in the political map, at least the Jewish political map.
So, I think politically, trial or not trial, Netanyahu is safe until the end of his term, at the end of 2026 and I don't think the Israeli political map can manufacture a very different ideology that Netanyahu at this stage, that Netanyahu is presenting.
So, I don't think Netanyahu's political future is in festival, not in danger, but also it's not the key issue here, because he managed to achieve a consensus, at least the Jewish consensus inside the Knesset against the Palestinian state.
LIEL: Alon, it's a pleasure to have you on this morning, we'll have you again. Alon Liel, thank you very much indeed. Analysis and insight that is so important.
As we continue to consider where we are at and where this issue of Gaza, a solution for Gaza lies and a wider vision for a broader peace and prosperity in the Middle East.
For the time being, I'm going to leave it there. I'm Becky Anderson in Sharm El-Sheik. I'll be back a little late at this hour. I do, though, want to throw it back to Rosemary Church, who is in Atlanta with other news for you, Rosemary.
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Becky, we'll see you very soon.
Still to come, long range weapons capable of hitting Moscow. President Trump has threatened to send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine. We will look at what kind of impact they might have on the war back with that and more in just a moment.
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[02:22:16]
CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, the U.S. and Ukrainian presidents are talking about the possible use of a powerful weapon against Russia, American made Tomahawk missiles. Now they're expected to be a prime topic of discussion when Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet at the White House on Friday. President Trump has already threatened to provide Ukraine with the long range Tomahawks, which are capable of striking Moscow.
It's unclear how serious he is about supplying the weapons, but the possibility is being strongly criticized by Russian officials. CNN's Matthew Chance has our report from the Russian capital.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tomahawk cruise missile.
Even the threat of sending these U.S. weapons to Ukraine with a range of over 1,500 miles may be enough to bring Russia to the negotiating table.
At least that's what President Trump seems to think, telling reporters en route to the Middle East. He may tell the Kremlin to end the Ukraine war or face these formidable weapons easily capable of reaching Moscow.
TRUMP: I might say, look, if this war is not going to get settled, I'm going to send them Tomahawks. I may send that the Tomahawk is a an incredible weapon, very offensive weapon, and honestly, Russia does not need that. They don't need that. Yes, I may tell them that if the war is not settled, that we may very well do. We may not, but we may do it.
CHANCE (voice-over): That uncertain threat hasn't come out of nowhere.
For months now, Russia has been stepping up its own missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, stretching air defenses, fueling Ukrainian calls for a powerful, long range weapon to strike back, potentially deep inside Russia.
We see and hear that Russia is afraid that the Americans may give Tomahawks. Ukrainian president declared at the weekend, it's a signal that exactly such pressure may work for peace.
But in public, the Kremlin has been defiant, insisting the deployment of Tomahawks would have little impact on the battlefield but seriously ratchet up tensions between Moscow and Washington and Moscow and Washington.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Using Tomahawks without the direct participation of American military personnel is impossible. This would mark a completely new, qualitatively new stage of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the United States.
CHANCE (voice-over): And the missiles can potentially deliver a nuclear payload, leading to warnings yet again, of a catastrophic scenario.
[02:25:05]
It's impossible to tell whether a Tomahawk carries a nuclear or conventional warhead while it's in flight. The hawkish former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev posted, how is Russia supposed to respond? He asked.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE (on camera): Well, with President Trump now basking in the glory of his diplomatic success in the Middle East, he's clearly not given up on ending the war in Ukraine, but the hope that just one more powerful U.S. weapon, in this case, the Tomahawk missile, could be the key to ending that conflict may prove a little misplaced.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
CHURCH: More questions than answers after the U.S. president and world leaders signed a document committing to peace in Gaza, what's next for the enclave, that's just ahead.
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[02:30:00]
ANDERSON: Well, that was quite the trip. We've got live pictures now of Air Force One landing back in the States, Donald Trump at the end of a journey which many are calling historic. And certainly, it is difficult to overstate the enormity of getting a ceasefire deal across the line and getting the convening of so many world leaders here in Sharm el-Sheikh, where I am, to sign off on what they're calling a Declaration for Peace in the Middle East. I would argue it is an aspirational goal, a vision for peace and prosperity.
We've been discussing the fact that it does lack significant detail, not least on just how this plan might be implemented. So President Trump says that agreement may be the "greatest deal of them all," but he declined to directly address whether he supports recognizing a Palestinian state.
Well, we are seeing him land now. And as we look at those images, CNN's Salma Abdelaziz monitoring this live from London. It is the morning after -- the day before as it were, to steal a phrase. World leaders have left Sharm el-Sheikh; hostages, those who are alive, reunited with their families; Palestinian detainees, some of them back with their families as well. But the president has left Sharm el- Sheikh without creating a real process for implementing Gaza's security and governance. So that does, Salma, beg the question where does that lead Gaza right now as we speak?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Now that you have that Phase One of Trump's peace plan done, how do you reach Phase Two? Well, first of all, what is Phase Two? Well, one of the first parts of Phase Two is that Hamas is supposed to lay down its arms and hand over power. Something that the organization has said it's not only unwilling to do, it is actually now actively trying to reassert control in Gaza since the ceasefire was put into effect.
There's images of Hamas police back on the streets, policing locals. There's also even been clashes, Becky, between Hamas militants and other groups that they see as rivals or collaborators with Israel. Look, to break this down for you, I just want to pull up some of the points from Trump's Peace Plan and break them down with you. The one I want to pull up first is at the 15th point on Trump's 20-point Peace Plan, if we could pull that up, it discusses the International Stabilization Force, the idea being that an Arab-led group would be able to put a force into place that would train police, train internal security forces in Gaza.
Now, how would all of that happen, Becky, if Hamas is not even willing to step down and there is no semblance, no shape to this stabilization force? Again, this is just one point on the 20-point Peace Plan that's supposed to get us into this Phase Two, and we have no details, no outline of how that could take place and no Hamas that is willing to lay down arms. Now the question is, well, how would Israel respond to that? Does it resume the conflict? Does it resume the war?
The other thing you have to remember is that 53 percent of Gaza is still occupied by Israeli forces. There is so much more to work out here, Becky.
ANDERSON: Salma, it's good to have you. Thank you very much indeed. And we will take a look at that plan and really interrogate what some of those further points look like in the hours ahead. I'm joined now by Hasan Alhasan, Senior Fellow for Middle East Policy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. He is in Bahrain. You and I talk regularly. Your analysis is so vital and valuable to our viewers around the world given that you are from the Gulf region, you have a really good purview of thinking there and beyond.
[02:35:00]
I'm keen to get your thoughts on yesterday's summit, and particularly that regional presence. The Gulf certainly present, the two key leaders of Saudi and UAE not, that is Mohammed bin Salman of the Kingdom and Mohamed bin Zayed of the UAE. Perhaps you just want to give me your thoughts on why you think they weren't there and the presence of those who were.
HASAN ALHASAN, SENIOR FELLOW FOR MIDDLE EAST POLICY, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: Well, thank you, Becky. Always good to be with you. You're right. I think there is an important sort of optics dimension to be discussed with regards to the Sharm el-Sheikh summit yesterday. And I think you're right to point out, as President Trump did himself, the absence of the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman and the UAE President, Mohamed bin Zayed. That's not to say that Saudi Arabia and UAE weren't represented at all. They were, and at a fairly high level.
ANDERSON: Correct.
ALHASAN: But not at the head of state or head of government level, that's for sure. I think it's, on the one hand, I think there is a -- perhaps a degree of competition between the Gulf States that I think is difficult to overlook. Qatar, I think, had pride of place at that summit, and I think the Saudis and Emiratis are somewhat reluctant to show up at the senior-most level if they don't occupy center stage, if they're not sort of this central or main players at the summit.
So I think, to some extent, there is a degree of competition for who plays a bigger role on regional affairs. And I think that often materializes in levels of attendance, and so on. So I think that there was a bit of that. But I don't think that this suggests that these countries are not behind the broad momentum for ceasefire.
ANDERSON: Yes.
ALHASAN: They've already signed up, and have expressed their support for the ceasefire agreement. Saudi Arabia played a very important role actually in, I think in my analysis, bringing about the conditions, the international pressure, leading the global coalition for the two- state solution that really energized the wave of recognitions of Palestinian statehood that I think cumulatively created the sort of international pressure that was necessary, probably in addition to Israel's attack on Doha and the backlash that this generated. I think all of which came together to convince Trump that now was the time to put an end to the war.
ANDERSON: What we don't have is a commitment from Donald Trump to a two-state solution, nor do we have that from this current leader in Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, nor clearly from his -- the right wing of this current government. And I wonder where that leaves us when the dust settles, as it were. And when you look through this 462-word document, it is very aspirational. It has a real goal, but -- and it's a goal that is echoed around this region, beyond conflict, navigate a new Middle East, one of peace and prosperity. But there's an awful lot between where we are now and getting to there. What are the risks?
ALHASAN: Yeah. And I think, we have to ask whose goals are these, because it's really Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israelis who have been talking about the new Middle East. I'm not sure anyone else in the region is necessarily terribly excited about the prospect of the new Middle East, where there's clearly an absence of international law being applied and where Israel gets to run havoc however it pleases. I think the issue here is that this is clearly a very one-sided aspiration. There is no mention, as you pointed out correctly, of a Palestinian state, of the two-state solution.
And I don't think anyone to date has come up, however flawed the two- state solution is, has come up with a more widely acceptable path for a permanent resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And I think without the permanent and without an end goal in sight that allows the Palestinians to live free of Israeli occupation, to exercise their international sort of legal right of self- determination, it's difficult to see how one can create a sustainable peace in that area and not be caught up again in the cycle of conflict.
Now in the interim, and this is also I think a very one-sided and flawed plan, and if we were to listen to Trump's speech at the Knesset yesterday at Sharm el-Sheikh, the burden seems to be overwhelmingly placed on the Arab states to dish out and dole out the funds for reconstruction, over $50 billion.
ANDERSON: Yep.
ALHASAN: Even though the destruction reeked in Israel and Gaza was brought about by Israel with American arms. But somehow the burden of reconstruction is being put entirely on the Arab states. The burden of contributing to an international security force and disarming Hamas from -- if one were to listen to President Trump, again, the expectation seems to be that the Arab states are going to carry most of that burden.
[02:40:00]
And there's really, I think, very little talk from the Trump administration and by President Trump himself, who's very mercurial, who's difficult to predict, quite capricious at times, about what he intends to do if Israel decides to violate the ceasefire agreement. There's a lot of talk about retribution if Hamas were to violate it, but what about Benjamin Netanyahu and his incentive to spoil the ceasefire agreement?
So I think this is entirely flawed. It's -- I think it's very difficult to expect Arab countries to contribute to a peacekeeping force, so long as Hamas does not fully cooperate. And Hamas is unlikely to cooperate and lay down its arms if it doesn't believe that Israel is going to fully vacate the Gaza Strip. Israel at the moment occupies still more than half of Gaza. If it doesn't believe that a permanent ceasefire is going to be in place.
ANDERSON: Right.
ALHASAN: And if it doesn't believe that the Palestinian State is going to sort of be the final outcome of this process.
ANDERSON: Yeah, Hasan, it's -- I promised our viewers great analysis and insight, and you never fail me. So, thank you very much indeed for joining us, Hasan Alhasan, on the show today. Well, cheers filled the air in Gaza and the West Bank after buses of Palestinian detainees returned as part of the ceasefire deal. CNN's Nada Bashir is in Ramallah with that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gathered in hundreds, waiting in anticipation to witness the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli detention.
BASHIR: Well, as you can see behind me, the buses are now arriving here in Ramallah, carrying the Palestinian prisoners who have been released today from detention as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal, in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages held captive in Gaza.
BASHIR (voice-over): As part of the deal, 250 men serving long-term or even life sentences were released, many of them to the occupied West Bank or East Jerusalem. But more than 150 of them deported to Egypt, forced into exile. All had been serving long-term or life sentences in Israeli jails, often convicted of serious offenses, some of them members of Hamas and other militant groups. Some told us they were beaten and abused by Israeli forces in prison.
Ahmed Anwar (ph), who was convicted of murder and given three life sentences, told us inmates were beaten and humiliated on a daily basis without reason.
A member of the Palestinian Red Crescent we spoke to said, some of those released had fresh fractures and were being treated in hospital. Israel's Prison Service told us, "To the best of our knowledge, no such incidents occurred." In Israel, the exchange is seen as a heavy but acceptable price to pay for the freedom of Israeli hostages. These prisoners, some say, have blood on their hands. But in the West Bank, these men are regarded by many as political prisoners, part of the Palestinian Resistance Movement.
Their return is something Palestinians have long hoped for, none more so than those reunited with their loved ones after decades behind bars, such as Samer el-Halabiya, who was convicted of attempted murder.
This came as a surprise and I'm still in shock, Samer says. I can't believe it, honestly. I can't believe I'm with my mother.
While reunions here were emotional, celebrations were short-lived and muted. Israeli authorities warning Palestinians not to engage in any celebrations, dropping flyers by drone early Monday, warning onlookers, "We are watching you everywhere" printed in Arabic.
But in Gaza, celebrations were widespread. As the delicate ceasefire continues to hold, some 1,700 Palestinians detained without charge over the course of the war, will return to the Strip. Bused across the border, returning to near total destruction, some unaware of the fate of their loved ones. While the exchange may mark a significant step towards peace, optimism for Palestinians is coupled with great trepidation over what may come next for Gaza and for the West Bank.
Nada Bashir, CNN, in Ramallah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: While the outcome of Trump's visit to Sharm el-Sheikh, here where I am, where more than 30 world leaders or representatives of the countries traveled, hoping to seize momentum to keep working towards lasting peace, was this signed agreement, the Trump Declaration for Enduring Peace and Prosperity. 426 words, the very first line, "We the undersigned welcome the truly historic commitment and implementation by all parties to the Trump Peace Agreement ending more than two years of profound suffering and loss, opening a new chapter for the region, defined by hope, security, and a shared vision for peace and prosperity."
[02:45:00]
Now, that is a goal. It's an aspirational vision that is certainly saying all the right things, and I'm certainly not going to argue with the premise here. As my colleague, Mostafa Salem, pins (ph) out in his excellent analysis piece on CNN, Donald Trump leaves the Middle East with as many questions as when he arrived. In fact, from my years of covering this region from our Abu Dhabi, Middle East programming headquarters, this is language I hear time and again. It echoes the guiding principles in the UAE, again, in the Trump administration's vision for this region, working in concert with some key partners like the UAE, of peace and tolerance and an outright rejection of extremism.
It's about a fundamental interest in business and commerce as a driver of integration, as Donald Trump laid out in the Abraham Accords. But it is challenging to pick out any line of substance in this document, particularly on the elephant in the room, which is a Palestinian State that the Egyptian foreign Minister tells me is integral to lasting peace here. And you hear that echoed certainly around this region, not least by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who the U.S. of course, and Israel, hope will be the next signatory of the Abraham Accords.
I would suggest that is not likely, at least not soon. Well, I'll be closely covering where this story goes next on this long road to sustainable peace from Abu Dhabi and across the region, following the key stakeholders here as they navigate Gaza's future. That is my job and you should rely on me to do that for you.
For the time being, from our coverage here in Sharm el-Sheikh, that is it. I'm going to hand you back to Rosemary Church in Atlanta for more of our headlines this morning. Rosemary?
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": Thank you, Becky. And we, of course, appreciate all your reporting on this incredible story. Thank you so much.
Coming up, the latest on the deadly flooding and landslides in Mexico where dozens are still missing and rescue efforts are underway. We'll have that and more in just a moment.
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[02:52:12]
CHURCH: At least 64 people are dead and 65 still missing after days of torrential rain triggered flooding and landslides across Mexico. Thousands of troops have been deployed as rescuers struggle to reach more than 80 towns that remain inaccessible. CNN's Valeria Leon has more from one of the hardest hit regions.
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VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Days of heavy rain have caused widespread destruction across central and southeastern Mexico where landslide and mudslide, floodings have put houses like this one under the ground. As you can see here, these two crosses are because two babies were died here, and it was during the flooding two days ago when this tragedy happened. And there are no authorities in this town in Hidalgo, Mexico, but they were the neighbors, the ones who come and helped this family. This is Enrique Hernandez (ph). He was the one that helped these babies.
[Foreign Language]
He said that, most of the neighbors came here to try to rescue these two children, but they couldn't save them. So, this family had moved to a remote community a few kilometers away from here. But we can see part of the belongings and this is the fridge that used to be inside of this house. And here we have still this food left and all the roads in this community have -- show like this destruction in part of this trail. Most of the neighbors now are looking for help, asking the government to distribute aid to part of this community and others that have been cut off for more than three days.
The federal government has announced a census starting this week to help and distribute aid to most of the people. There are hundreds of people that need this help and that they have been in communicated for the last days. This is the situation on the ground.
I'm Valeria Leon, in Hidalgo, Mexico.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have lift off. Go super heavy. Go Starship. Thanks for all the historic flights, bad one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Still ahead, an update on SpaceX's latest Starship test flight and why it's fiery landing is seen as a success.
[02:55:00]
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