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One World with Zain Asher
Last Living American Hostage Handed To Red Cross; Hamas Hands Edan Alexander To Red Cross Ahead Of His Release; Israeli-American Hostage Now In The hands Of The IDF; IDF: Israeli-American Hostage Now In Israel; Aired 12-1p ET
Aired May 12, 2025 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:00:00]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: Wish you all the best, my friend. Thank you so much for joining us on the program.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you. Thank you all.
And stay with us. We'll have more "ONE WORLD" after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MUSIC
GOLODRYGA: All right. Hello, everyone. Live from New York, I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: And I'm Zain Asher. You are watching the second hour of "ONE WORLD." We are following breaking news.
Hamas says it has freed the last remaining American hostage in Gaza. We are waiting for the Red Cross convoy to arrive at the Re'im military base in
Israel. Live pictures for you there.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Edan Alexander was kidnapped by Hamas militants on October 7th, 2023.
Kylie Atwood is with us from Washington, D.C. Now, Edan Alexander is the last living American hostage held in Gaza. We have gotten a word that Hamas
had handed him over to the Red Cross. We are waiting to see that convoy. Kylie passed through that street there at Re'im military base where Edan
Alexander will not only be on Israeli territory for the first time since October 7th, but also will then be evaluated, taken to a hospital, and
finally reunited with his family.
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: And now that he is in the hands of the Red Cross, all the people, all the US officials who have been
working on this can sigh a large sigh of relief, knowing that he is out of the hands of Hamas and headed to Israel where we know his family is on the
ground there to see him. We saw special envoy for us hostage affairs from the Trump administration flew over last night with Edan Alexander's mother
on Mother's Day.
What a better flight to take to finally go there and see her son who, as you guys said, was serving in the Israeli military, an IDF soldier. He was
at an outpost along the border of Gaza when he was taken hostage on October 7th.
And it has been what his family members have called just horrendous, awful, last few years, as he has been held hostage. There has been videos of him
that leaked out from Hamas of him in the tunnels underground Gaza that have just been horrific for his family to say -- to see.
So now this is a moment of jubilation. President Trump was speaking in the Oval Office here in Washington just in the last hour, calling this great
news. Heralding Steve Witkoff, his Special Envoy for Middle East for actually brokering this deal earlier today. He also thanked the mediators,
the Egyptians and the Qataris who helped us to actually come to fruition.
We know that this really came together over the course of the last few days. This was something that Steve Witkoff, as I said, was involved in,
and also Hamas says that there was dialogue between U.S. officials on this front. Well, watch to learn more about what that dialogue actually looked
like.
[12:05:06]
But for the time being, this is just a really happy moment for his family, who have been hoping for this for so long. And it comes, of course, as
President Trump is headed to the Middle East. There are expected to be talks with Hamas, Israel, and others in Doha in the coming days to
potentially use this moment to kick start ceasefire and potential hostage, further hostage release.
We know that there are dozens of Israeli hostages that are still being held by Hamas at this moment.
ASHER: Yes. You mentioned Yael, Edan Alexander's mother. I mean, I just -- I can't even honestly imagine what this moment must be for her. I mean, she
described seeing her son in that video as both somewhat relieving, but also as you would understand, distressing.
I mean, relief, obviously, because he is alive, but distressing to see her son suffer. She has been holding her breath for the past 18 months. And
now, within the next hour or so, she can finally exhale.
Just in terms of what this means for Hamas. And Israel has said that they're not going to give any concessions as a result of this release of
Edan Alexander. But what sort of concessions would Hamas be hoping for here?
ATWOOD: Well, Hamas is clearly hoping that the Trump administration sees this as a show of good faith on behalf of Hamas. And so that when the U.S.
is talking about the future of Gaza, talking about what things might look like there, that they might actually engage with Hamas in a way that would
potentially allow Hamas to maybe maintain some sort of presence in Gaza.
We know that that has been, of course, a red line for Israel. But it's clear that Hamas sees this as a moment to try and engage the Trump
administration.
Simultaneously, of course, as you said, the Israelis are saying that there is no way that they will commit to anything following the release of
Alexander here.
However, that was said by the Prime Minister. And then just hours later, he had a phone call. We're told with President Trump, just today, he met with
President Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.
And then he said that there would be an Israeli team headed to Doha tomorrow to discuss the possibility of what could come here, potentially a
ceasefire, the release of those Israeli hostages.
So, Hamas, obviously, viewed this as a moment of opportunity. We'll have to watch and see how that all plays out over the course of the next few days.
And it's incredibly notable that as old this is happening, President Trump is in the region. His schedule is obviously set. He's going to be in Doha.
He's going to be in the United Arab Emirates. He's going to be in Saudi Arabia. But he just floated in the last hour the possibility of going to
Turkey, where there are going to be some Ukraine-Russia talks possibly.
So possibly, he would personally engage in any efforts here to drive forth a ceasefire in Gaza and end to this conflict, which we know has been a
priority for him.
GOLODRYGA: And, Kylie, some of the things I've heard throughout this ordeal, since the war began, since October 7th, and obviously since the
election of Donald Trump, is concern among Israeli family members of hostages that without that pressure from President Trump, specifically, not
only on Hamas, obviously, but also on Prime Minister Netanyahu showing that -- that he is prioritizing the release of all hostages, now that the last
live American, thankfully, looks to -- to be released to Israeli hands and back to safety, there is concern that he may lose interest in bringing this
war to an end or arguing and pushing for the release of the remaining hostages.
Just walk us through their thought process, the U.S. policy, as this war continues.
ATWOOD: Well, listen, their concerns are obviously justified, Bianna. We know that when it comes to the President of the United States, their focus,
first and foremost, the safety of Americans.
So now that the last living American Israeli has been released, it's rightful for them to be concerned about President Trump potentially focused
a little bit less on this conflict.
However, we should also consider this in the bigger picture, which is that President Trump made commitments on the campaign trail to bringing an end
to this conflict in Gaza.
And given those commitments, I do think that U.S. officials will still be focused on trying to drive that outcome. Obviously, they have a little bit
less leverage now that Edan Alexander has been released when it comes to pressuring Hamas.
[12:10:04]
But where they do have leverage is, you know, on the Israeli side and forcing Prime Minister Netanyahu to potentially make some concessions here
to release all of those Israelis who are still being held hostage.
So we really have to watch and see how this plays out. And you have to consider that President Trump is also focused on some other foreign policy
objectives right now. We have this new tariff deal with China. We have the potential talks when it comes to the Ukraine war. You have those talks
ongoing when it comes to a potential Iran nuclear agreement.
So there's a lot on the board right now when it comes to the Trump administration. We're going to have to watch and see how this plays out in
terms of prioritization and amount of focus that they can put on this Gaza conflict.
ASHER: All right. Kylie, do stand by. I want to bring in Gershon Baskin, a former Israeli hostage negotiator. Gershon, thank you so much for being
with us. I want to expand upon a really, really good question that my colleague, Bianna Golodryga, just asked.
Now that we have the last living American hostage about to be released here, what does it mean for the other hostages that are being held in Gaza?
What does it mean for their negotiations surrounding their release as well?
GERSHON BASKIN, FORMER ISRAELI HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR: Obviously, other Israeli families who hostages haven't been returned yet are very worried because
the government of Israel has let them down. Prime Minister Netanyahu has not made a deal. When a deal was on the table, he didn't continue the
negotiations with the second phase of the deal that was signed just prior to President Trump entering the Oval Office. There's breakthroughs and
concern.
On the other hand, if it is true what the president has been saying, that he wants this war to end and he wants a deal to be made to bring the
hostages home, it is only President Trump who has leveraged over Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Netanyahu is to face down his coalition partners who are against any kind of deal. And it will probably mean that Netanyahu's government will break
up.
Now, this is very hard for Netanyahu to deal, but on the other hand, it would be very hard for Netanyahu to say no to President Trump if he's
decisive about it.
GOLODRYGA: And, Gershon, some of those more far-right members and -- of this coalition government may be threatening to leave as we saw Itamar Ben-
Gvir do just that a few months ago, only to come back into government.
What other leverage do they have other than saying, we're going to walk away from the power that we now wield altogether because it's not as if
they're dealing with a democratic president here in the United States to where they can still say, listen, the Republicans will step in and pressure
this administration with Donald Trump in charge now. They don't have many more options in France in the United States, I would imagine.
BASKIN: Well, at least to Itamar -- Itamar Ben-Gvir on Minister of National Security believes that he would come out better after elections. So he's
not so worried about the government breaking up his other partner, the Minister of Finance, say, Bezalel Smotrich, is not even crossing the
threshold in the polls.
But there's a bigger issue facing us and beyond the hostages and beyond this war, if President Trump is about to go to the Gulf, he'll be in Saudi
Arabia, in the United Arab Emirates, and in Qatar, and he will not only be there to make deals that will help the American economy and sell American
weapons and bring investment to the United States, he's going to hear from the Arab partners that they want to deal on the Palestinian question.
They want a direct path to the Palestinian state, and they know that Prime Minister Netanyahu can deliver on that. So if Trump hears that decisively
from the Arab partners and he accepts that in order to make deals with them, he has to also give something politically, we might see a showdown
between the United States and Israel, perhaps for the first time on the initial of the greatest consequence to the future of the region.
ASHER: I mean, that's such an interesting point. And, you know, you touched on earlier this idea that the only person who has any kind of leverage over
Netanyahu is, of course, the U.S. president. It's Trump. And right now, there is just so much daylight, or there appears to be some daylight
between the two men, particularly on the issue of Iran.
I mean, Trump's strategy with Iran is to try to make a deal, you know. And obviously, Netanyahu is really not on board with that. So give us your take
on the relationship between these two.
BASKIN: Well, we have Donald Trump moving forward with what he promised throughout his campaign, America First. He's making a deal with Iran. He
made a deal with the Houthis and Yemen. He is -- is talking directly to Hamas, and he hasn't consulted Israel on any of these issues. He's putting
Israel aside.
The main focus is what's good for America. He said, he doesn't want to put boots -- American boots on the ground in the Middle East or anywhere else.
And he appears to be serious.
Apparently, Trump 2.0 is very different from his first time around. And he seems to be very serious about this promise that he made that he won't make
new wars, that he will help to end wars. And he's on the path of negotiations which is beyond, I think, anything that we could have expected
prior to his entering the White House again.
[12:15:18]
GOLODRYGA: But the one thing that is familiar is his unpredictability. That is for sure and we --
BASKIN: That's for sure.
GOLODRYGA: -- are usually getting another example of that as we speak.
Let's go to Jeremy Diamond who is at Hostage Square. And, Jeremy, you've been there all day with those gathered around anticipating this great scene
of Edan Alexander crossing over into Israeli territory, reunited with his family after 18 grueling months.
And you see people holding images of Edan Alexander behind you, but also holding images and photos of other hostages that remain there in Gaza. And
these moments are always very complex, bittersweet, so much joy, but also so much sadness and heartbreak knowing at those that he left behind.
Without a doubt about it, there are mixed emotions. At the moment though what we are feeling and what we are seeing around us is a total celebratory
atmosphere as people are really taking in this moment that after 19 months of captivity, Edan Alexander, an Israeli soldier, who was also the last
remaining living American health hostage in Gaza has now indeed been released.
He is on route to an Israeli military base in a Red Cross vehicle as we speak where he will be able to embrace his mother, Yael, for the first time
after securing his freedom.
We -- we know, of course, that this was the product of negotiations that the United States decided to hold separate from those that the Israeli
government has been engaged in, really bypassing the Israeli government in order to go directly to Hamas via those Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
And the hope now is that this will unlock progress towards a broader agreement to free the remaining 58 hostages still held in Gaza to secure a
ceasefire in the Gaza strip and perhaps even in the words of President Trump to end the brutal war as he described it in Gaza.
You spoke about those mixed emotions. And I certainly felt them earlier today as I spoke with the families of some of those hostages who are still
held in Gaza.
One of them was the family of -- and people here I should just tell you are reacting to images on Israeli TV of Edan Alexander standing right now
alongside a Red Cross official as well as Hamas militants here.
He appears to be well at least from seeing him from kind of above the waist in this image, and -- and you saw people kind of reacting here with joy
because there was so much uncertainty about what kind of condition Edan Alexander would be in as he was released.
He has been held for more than 19 months. There were reports from Hamas of an Israeli air strike on the location where he was being held. And so
considerable uncertainty about the kind of condition in which he would be released, but at least from this one still image you at least see him
standing on his own two feet, unassisted. And people here, obviously, jumping for joy at that image of him which I'm sure will have for you
shortly.
ASHER: And, Jeremy, that's actually one thing that I have found just so beautiful in all of this just the unity and the solidarity among Israelis.
I mean, you're looking at people who may not have never -- may not had ever met Edan Alexander in person, may not have ever shaken his hand, may not
have ever seen him, but yet, they are jumping for joy as if they know him personally.
I mean, Israel really does feel, at times, like a nine million member family. Just talk to us about the unity between people there right now.
DIAMOND: Without a doubt. This is a small country which is why when October 7th happened, there was not a single person who wasn't affected in some way
by that attack. It is also why the names of the Israeli hostages are known to every single Israelis.
They are known by their first names, not just their first and last names, but people will talk about Edan. And everyone here knows who they are
talking about when they say Edan, and now that they can say Edan is free. Edan is going to be in the arms of his mother very, very shortly.
This moment of unity though, I should know, comes amid a lot of disunity as well that we have seen over the last several weeks in Israel as the Israeli
government and Prime Minister Netanyahu took a very clear direction of pursuing an expansion of the war in Gaza rather than a hostage release
deal, something that the majority of Israelis very much disagree with.
[12:20:07]
We have seen after poll after poll in Israel over the last month that have shown that Israelis would much prefer to see a deal to end the war in Gaza
and secure the release of all of the hostages over an expansion of the military campaign there.
This government led by Prime Minister Netanyahu, over the last week, has decided to expand the war in Gaza, but now all of that is very much in
question as we are now seeing a different path emerge following the release of Edan Alexander.
The United States' extreme -- you know, an extensive diplomatic efforts to secure that deal and the possibility now that that will also lead to
broader negotiations that could see a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of the remaining hostages.
GOLODRYGA: Jeremy, speaking of Prime Minister Netanyahu, we heard from President Trump before he departed for the region. I mentioned the release
of Edan Alexander talk about how emotional it was to meet with his family and how important it is to have the last live remaining Israeli-American
hostage come home. Are we expecting to hear from Prime Minister Netanyahu anytime soon?
DIAMOND: We don't know. There -- there's no -- there's nothing that's been announced at the moment. Certainly, the Israeli Prime Minister has
communicated through statements since this deal emerged. One, to convey that Israel is not giving up anything in exchange for Edan Alexander.
There are no Palestinian prisoners being released in exchange for him because this is this kind of goodwill gesture intended to jumpstart future
negotiations.
What we have also heard from him is that he spoke with President Trump today after meeting with President Trump's Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff,
here in Israel and that he is going to send a delegation to meet in Doha, Qatar tomorrow to pursue these negotiations.
But he is stressing that these negotiations will happen under fire, meaning that the Israeli military will continue its airstrikes in Gaza, will
continue its ground operation in Gaza until there is any kind of deal to free more hostages to secure some kind of a ceasefire. That is, of course,
very important for him to communicate to the right wing members of his governing coalition who very much have been pushing for an expansion of the
war and who have been arguing against any kind of hostage release deal and especially any kind of deal that would end the war and leave Hamas in any
kind of position of power in Gaza.
ASHER: All right. Jeremy, stand by. I want to go back to Gershon Baskin, former Israeli hostage negotiator.
Gershon, why would Hamas agree to this?
BASKIN: Hamas' primary objective right now is to end the war. Hamas came to a realization, more than a year ago, that they can no longer govern Gaza.
This is something that they saw as a result of the war.
There is this deep debate within Hamas of whether or not they can continue an armed struggling and all ground to their weapons. But the reality is
that Hamas is decimated. They don't have the troops. They don't have the organized military that they had prior to October 7th of 2023.
Their political leadership has been killed by Israel, except for the political leaders outside and the majority of the Gazan population, a large
majority, don't want Hamas anymore. So Hamas is dealing with reality now and there are talks about perhaps reshaping its agenda, perhaps becoming a
political party.
But more importantly, I think it's the overall unity of the Arab world, the backing the Egyptian plan, the Arab League is supporting it to have a
replacement of Palestinian government in Gaza, which would be legitimate, which could govern Gaza.
But in order to make this work, there really needs to be a wider political framework which moves the Palestinian question forward toward freedom and
liberation and ending the Israeli occupation. And here, the Israeli side is a major obstacle to that.
So -- and there's a coming together right now of this issue of ending the war, releasing the hostages and the wider political framework, which are
all in the interest of the United States right now, not so much in the interest of the government of Israel, but definitely in the interest of the
state of Israel and the people of Israel.
GOLODRYGA: Gershon, stand by for us, please. I want to bring in Aaron David Miller.
And, Aaron, this has all unfolded over the last 24 to 48 hours. And if there's one thing we know about Prime Minister Netanyahu is that he is not
a political novice. He has been around for a very, very long time and is quite accomplished at spinning a narrative to his favor.
How would you imagine he then projects this latest development to the Israeli public, to his coalition government just days after he rolled out
what would be a large scale or announced, what would be a large scale renewed Israeli offensive?
[12:25:03]
AARON DAVID MILLER, FORMER U.S. DEPARTMENT MIDDLE EAST NEGOTIATOR: Yes. Look, thanks for having me, Bianna.
Look, a guy who's man -- who's maneuvered and navigated the longest governing prime minister in the history of the state of Israel on trial for
bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in a Jerusalem district court, what, five, five years and running now, trying to avoid conviction or a plea deal
that would drive him on politics.
This is not just a speed bump, I suggest. It's a little more than that. Because what you've seen in Washington is something quite extraordinary. I
mean, I -- I've -- I've worked for administrations from Jimmy Carter to Bush 43, with the exception of James Baker and George H.W. Bush. And I
think what Trump has done even goes beyond that.
The kind of lack of coordination with the Israelis is part of a pattern. We saw it with Adam Boehler's apparently sanctioned meetings with Hamas, three
of them. We've seen it again over the last five days, whether this was a direct intercession directly negotiated by an American, probably not.
It probably was pushed heavily by the Egyptians and maybe the Qataris. You've seen Trump negotiate a separate deal on the Houthis. And in the
presence of an Israeli prime minister, he announces direct, quote-unquote, negotiations with Iran now entering their fifth round.
This is an extraordinary level of independence that any American administration, Republican or Democrat, has exhibited with respect to
Israel. It's daylight right now between the two countries, whether it's a wedge is another matter. And that brings me to the core question of how
hard, how heavy, how involved is Donald Trump planned to be in taking Edan Alexander freedom and building on it so that he can forestall an Israeli
ground campaign.
Engineer the resumption of badly needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza. And then, and this is the big lift, try to figure out a way to reconcile
with Hamas ones. Guarantees that the Israelis will withdraw from Gaza and in the war with what Benjamin Netanyahu right now cannot accept, which is a
full withdrawal of Israeli forces in the end of the war in Gaza. That is the -- that's the diplomatic lift. Can Trump pull it off? That's the
question.
ASHER: All right. Aaron David Miller, stand by. I want to go back to Kylie Atwood at the State Department.
So, Kylie, we're just speaking to Gershon Baskin, who is essentially saying that, listen, one of the reasons why Hamas is releasing Edan Alexander is
because of their situation right now. They are decimated, they have suffered a lot. Obviously, their leadership has taken a hit. There's real
questions as to whether or not they can continue to fight.
But in terms of them releasing more hostages at this point in time, there are only 24 living hostages in Gaza right now.
If they continue to release more, they end up losing their leverage. What does Hamas do next do you think?
ATWOOD: Well, that's right. And they've certainly lost some leverage in releasing Edan Alexander today. But what you have to consider is the
dialogue that happened with the United States through the Egyptians and the Qataris, as we understand it, to get here.
It would be presumed that Hamas got some sort of a commitment from the United States to really drive towards that end of a conflict.
And, of course, there have been moments over the last year and a half where there have been hopeful movement towards a potential long-term ceasefire,
towards an end of this conflict, presumably Hamas felt like they got an actual security commitment from the United States.
I don't talk about military security but, you know, in terms of pressure or security from the United States, that they would actually try and make this
be a moment that could drive an end to this conflict.
We -- we -- we are waiting to hear what that dialogue looks like, because it's Steve Witkoff who is in Israel right now, who has been the primary
interlocutor for the Trump administration, who has been leading these efforts.
And one thing about the Trump administration is that there are very few people who actually know what's going on when it comes to these
conversations that Steve Witkoff is happing. It's a very tight circle around Witkoff and then around President Trump himself.
So it will be interesting to learn what the United States is committed to doing following the release of Alexander today. Obviously, these follow-on
talks in Doha are significant. And we'll just have to see, you know, what the United States pressure on Israel to come to some sort of a deal
actually looks like.
[12:30:04]
And, you know, Hamas is really decimated in a lot of ways. When you look at Gaza, they are clearly looking for a lifeline here. And we should note that
the Palestinians who still live there are facing troubles that are beyond one's capability to even really understand. There hasn't been humanitarian
flow into Gaza for more than two months now. That is a humanitarian crisis. And so that is a big part of this moment right now as well.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And that humanitarian crisis has even led some of those civilians in Gaza to -- to stand up and rebel just a few weeks ago against
Hamas as well.
Panel, we hope that you can stand by for us. We're going to take a quick break as we are awaiting to see the first images of Edan Alexander, the
last live American Israeli hostage in Gaza reunited with his family in Israel. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: Back to our breaking news. The sun is now setting in Israel as Hamas has handed over Edan Alexander to the Red Cross. We are waiting for
him to arrive in Israel now.
ASHER: Yes. Alexander was kidnapped on October 7th, 2023 by Hamas militants when he was just 19 years old. He is now 21 years old. This is an American-
Israeli citizen. He was born in Tel Aviv but grew up in New Jersey and left off to high school to join the IDF.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. His family in Tenafly, New Jersey up very early this morning as their neighbors there as well anticipating his return back into
Israeli custody and safety.
Kylie Atwood is in Washington. We have Aaron David Miller and Gershon Baskin with us as well.
And, Gershon, I do want to get your take on what had been reported and we heard from the family of Edan Alexander as well say that if he is well
enough and fit enough later this week, that he would indeed or -- or might actually travel to Qatar to meet with President Trump there. Walk us
through that -- that visual.
[12:35:24]
BASKIN: It's really quite remarkable. I mean, they should give the guy a break after spending a year and seven months in captivity in Gaza, in
tunnels. He needs time to recover. He -- he's going to be entering the hospital today for medical evaluation.
Putting him on a plane to go and see President Trump right away, I think -- I think is not the right thing to do. I think that the time will come for
him to go to the White House and meet President Trump and thank President Trump and Steve Witkoff and Adam Boehler, but -- but really, give the guy a
break.
ASHER: And, Aaron David Miller, let me bring you in, because this release of Edan Alexander comes at a really interesting time between Israel and
Gaza with this war. Israel has obviously promised to intensify its offensive on Gaza, including seizing territory and displacing more of the
Palestinian population.
Just walk us through what happens next. I mean, why would Hamas then release more hostages when Israel is not offering any concessions after
this?
MILLER: I mean, look, there's a -- there -- I mean, there are a couple reasons. Clearly, the organization, both politically, economically and
militarily, has been -- has been devastating.
Secretary of State Tony Blinken said in -- in December that still that Hamas has managed to recruit as many fighters as these rallies have taken
off the battlefield, but it is no longer an effective military organization.
It is an insurgency, though, and it will continue to remain an insurgency with considerable, not total, fealty and loyalty of a population that is
subjected to horrendous Israeli artillery airstrikes and a ground campaign.
I think Hamas wants an end to the war. The negotiations that will be joined in Doha will revolve around the Witkoff -- latest Witkoff iteration, which
is an exchange of anywhere from 8 to 13 hostages in exchange for a 45 to 60-day ceasefire, including the surgeon of humanitarian assistance and
discussions about how to actually end the war.
And as I mentioned before, Hamas would release all of the hostages tomorrow, living and dead, if in fact they got ironclad assurances, number
one, that the war would end. And number two, that the Israelis would -- would -- would withdraw.
I don't think there is a force here on planet Earth, frankly, that is prepared to give Hamas those assurances and guarantees. And that's where I
-- I -- I think diplomacy is going to come in.
What -- what are the fallbacks? What can Hamas actually settle for? Israelis will maintain the right, I'm sure, to preempt and prevent by
entering into Gaza whenever they want. And that is clearly going to be an post-and-additional problem.
One last point, and Gershon can speak to this. You can't beat an idea, but you can make the idea much less relevant. And that's the wasted opportunity
over the last 18 months. Not been able to create an alternative, credible alternative, security, prosperity, good governance.
To -- to Hamas, that's the, what seemed to me, would be a -- a commonly held end state by all the players with the exception, perhaps, of the
Israeli Prime Minister.
GOLODRYGA: Kylie, I want to get back to you. I had mentioned in my question to Gershon about the president potentially meeting with Edan Alexander in
Qatar later this week if his health permits.
And that country's role throughout this conflict, we're looking at first new images of a convoy. There's the Red Cross convoy. We don't yet know.
You can tell it's much brighter outside earlier in the day.
We don't know if that is the convoy going in to -- to receive Edan Alexander or on its way back into Israel, but there we are seeing those
first images of that convoy. If we get any additional live images, obviously, we will bring them to you as we await for the first images of
Edan Alexander in Israeli and IDF hands.
But, Kylie, I do want to ask you about the role of Qatar throughout all of this. They, both the Biden administration and the Trump administration have
praised their role as mediators throughout this war in conflict. Israel does perceive them a bit differently here.
And there had been some tension in the past as Israel had -- or Qatar had facilitated some of the payments over the years agreed to by Prime Minister
Netanyahu to Hamas, the U.S. has a military base.
[12:40:14]
I do want to ask about their role, especially as there is a looming conflict developing here in Washington over the president, apparently
accepting a 747 plane as a gift to be used as Air Force One from the nation.
ATWOOD: Yes. Qatar has developed an incredibly close relationship with the United States over the course of really the last 5 or 10 years here. And
it's not just the Trump administration. As you said, the Biden administration also relied on them quite substantially when it came to
being a back channel with Hamas.
Hamas has had offices in Qatar where they have been able to operate outside, of course, the bounds of what many other countries would have
allowed them to do.
So even their presence in Doha has been valuable in some instances because it's allowed engagement with leaders of Hamas, but also been concerning to
people who have said that Qatar is, you know, enabling them to effectively lead an awful campaign in Gaza, military campaign in Gaza, and their
leadership to have, you know, normal lives.
And so the Trump administration is relying on Qatar and also the Egyptians as a back channel to Hamas right now. That's not necessarily new, as I
said, that happened during the Biden administration as well.
But what is new here is just looking at how the relationship between the U.S. and Qatar will potentially evolve over the course of the next two
years.
GOLODRYGA: All right. Kylie -- Kylie, I just want to interrupt you quickly. You can't see the screen right now, but we are getting the first image
there of Edan Alexander. There you see him in the middle to his right. It appears to be representative from the Red Cross and surrounding them are
Hamas terrorists who had handed him over their faces covered.
But there for the first time in 18 months, you see Edan Alexander as he is being freed from Hamas captivity into the hands of the Red Cross.
You can only imagine what this moment is going to be like for his family.
ASHER: Yes. I mean, it's a really chilling photo, but you have to imagine for his family, though. I mean, obviously, as I mentioned, this photo is
really chilling, and obviously disturbing for a number of reasons.
But for his family, knowing that he has been handed over, knowing that he is safe, knowing that he is going to be reunited with them in just a matter
of moments, has got to bring them a lot of relief.
Aaron David Miller, let me bring you back in because you were touching on this in my last question to you. I'm curious what happens next as it
pertains to Hamas' strategy.
Obviously, Hamas wants an end to this war. They've made that very, very clear. They've talked about the fact that any kind of negotiation going
forward -- OK. I've just been told by my producer that Edan Alexander is now in the hands of the IDF.
So we know that based on this photo, this was obviously taken in Gaza, where he was with Red Cross officials, and then obviously Hamas militants.
The Red Cross have now taken him into Israel and now have handed him over to the IDF.
Aaron, I was just asking you a question about the misalignment of goals between Netanyahu and Hamas. Obviously, Hamas wants an end to this war. As
I -- as I was saying, they've made that very clear. But at the same time, there's a lot of question about whether or not Netanyahu, for political
reasons, actually also wants an end to this war, whether or not it is politically more beneficial for Netanyahu for obvious reasons to keep this
war going.
Based on that misalignment, where do things go from here?
MILLER: Look, I think the Prime Minister's -- the prime directive, the overriding guide, his North Star, is maintaining himself in power. He's the
longest governing prime minister, right, in the history of the state of Israel. As I mentioned, on trial for bribery fraud and breach of trust in
Jerusalem District Court, before three judges at trial is what, four years running now?
The reality is he needs to maintain himself in power, I think, in his own mind. And you're dealing with a very difficult risk-ready Benjamin
Netanyahu from the ones we dealt with during his first iteration as prime minister in 1996, where he was very risk-averse.
He's very risk-ready now, and he's conflated, frankly, his political future with what he considers to be the best interests of the state of Israel. And
that means seeking what he probably knows is impossible, not just hollowing out Hamas as a military organization, as the Israelis had done to
Hezbollah, but essentially extinguishing its role -- its role, not just in governing Gaza, but as a significant political force in Gaza.
[12:45:15]
How -- how that is accomplished through military or even political means, I do not know. And I think that is going to be the demilitarization of Hamas.
There's a proposal apparently out now and a part of the Egyptians that Hamas has agreed to become a -- only a political organization, part of the
Palestinian National Movement. And it would turn over in trust its weapons to the Egyptians.
I mean, it -- it's hard for me to imagine, given the mistrust between Hamas and Israel, that that -- that sort of solution is going to be possible.
And this is why ending the war would require the kinds of leadership on the Palestinian side, the Israeli side, and the American side that, frankly,
we've never had. And I don't know -- I don't know how to get around Netanyahu's dilemma, which on one hand means, we must avenge the dead by
destroying Hamas and maintaining my political career, but we also have to redeem the living.
And frankly, I'm not in Israeli, I don't play one on television. But if you ask me, since governing is about choosing what the prime minister has
chosen. He's chosen to avenge the dead, not to redeem the living.
And therein lies a tragedy, not just for the hostages and their families, but frankly, for the Israeli soldiers deployed there. And, of course, for
the long-suffering Palestinian population in Gaza.
GOLODRYGA: Well, let's bring in an Israeli now that you've mentioned one. Alon Pinkas has been covering this war with us and helping us decipher the
inner workings of the Israeli government.
Obviously, Alon Pinkas, not aligned with the Netanyahu government, but very well aware of how it has been functioning and some of the -- the thought
process in the decision-making here.
Alon, it is no secret that this is a government and a number of its supporters had been quite actively campaigning for President Trump
throughout the election cycle. We're thrilled at his victory and are in the past two weeks or so questioning what in the world is going on in terms of
U.S. policy as it relates to Israel, as it relates to the region as a whole.
The fact that this seemed to blindside the Israeli government yet again over the weekend. Just walk us through the dynamics at play here.
ALON FINKAS, FORMER ISRAELI CONSUL GENERAL-NEW YORK: OK. First of all, Zain, no one, and this should be set for the record, no one plays in
Israeli on television better than Aaron Miller. So I hope he takes back his very self-deprecating remark. He does and he knows this better than most
Israelis.
Now, let me -- let me try and answer your -- your question. Aaron was absolutely right. This war is about Netanyahu's political survival.
And -- and during that time, he thought that intransigence and defiance and -- and picking up unnecessary fights with Biden would help him. And yes, he
-- well, he didn't campaign the way he campaigned against Clinton and particularly against Obama in 2008 and especially in 2012.
But if you look at the numbers, the support for Trump, Israel is second only to West Virginia. If you -- if you put Israel into the 50-state mix in
America, red, blue, and -- and -- and -- and so on, Israel is second only to West Virginia in terms -- West Virginia, I'm sorry, in terms of support
for Trump.
So here's the thing. From --from being the Cyrus, the savior of the Jewish people, as we call -- as some called him here, all of a sudden people are
amazed and don't understand what happened. And -- and using all these dumb terms like he threw Israel under the bus and he's throwing us to the dogs.
OK. He's not doing that.
He was never in Israel's corner to begin with. He's transactional. Everyone knows that by now. It's a quid pro quo and Netanyahu has no quid to give
him. The Saudis do, the Qataris do, the Emiratis do, the Russians do as opposed to the Ukrainians.
So in this respect, Netanyahu is on -- on -- on -- on the wrong side of the equation as far as President Trump is concerned.
Now, if you look, I don't want to take too much time from Aaron or from you, but if you -- if you -- if you connect the dots of the last three
months, since Trump is in office, you see that he blindsided Netanyahu twice, once in February in the Oval Office, when he said, don't worry about
it, I'm going to take care of Gaza. I'm turning it into a riviera, a beautiful resort. OK. Fine. But, you know, it -- it didn't seem negative
for Netanyahu, but he was blindsided.
[12:50:17]
Fast forward to April. Netanyahu again is in -- in the White House and being told in front of the press, the White House Press Corps, or the pool,
that as I told the Prime Minister Trump said, we're directly negotiating with Iran.
Now, that came, that -- that -- that took Netanyahu, not just by surprise, he was visibly shell-shocked.
Fast forward in other 10 days. Mr. Trump suspends military activities against the Houthis, calling them, quote unquote, brave.
Now, can you imagine Joe Biden or Barack Obama or Bill Clinton for that matter? Well, even George W. Bush, calling the Houthis brave, that
Netanyahu would go into a tantrum. He would invite himself to Congress.
So right now, he's in a -- he's in a -- he has a serious problem because not only does he -- does he not possess the leverage that he thinks he had
in Washington, but he's on Trump's wrong side.
ASHER: And just want to make it clear to our audience what we're looking at in terms of these live pictures. Well, this is actually Tel Aviv, Israel.
But before that, we were actually looking there we have it. Pictures of outside the Re'im military base.
We know that Edan Alexander has spoken with his mother. He's spoken to her for the first time. We also know that he is now in Israel. He is now in IDF
custody inside Israel. His mother is waiting for him at the Re'im military base. She has flown from Tenafly, New Jersey, which is where he grew up, to
be reunited with her son.
So, Aaron David Miller, I just want to jump off from a few things that our previous guest just said. Just in terms of the daylight that exists at this
point between Netanyahu and Trump, you know, this idea that Trump has blindsided Netanyahu a number of times. We all know that Trump is extremely
unpredictable. Just the way he's spoken about the Houthi rebels, the way he's handling Iran. He has not consulted the Israelis. And, obviously,
Netanyahu, I'm sure, has been taken aback by this.
I'm being told -- I'm sorry, Aaron, but I have to bring in Jeremy Diamond, who is in Hostage Square for us.
Jeremy, what more do we know? What information do we have about Edan Alexander at this point in time?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've just learned that Edan Alexander, the Israeli soldier, who is also an American citizen, has now
crossed into Israeli territory. He has arrived at that Re'im military base just outside of the Gaza Strip, where moments from now we expect that he
will be reunited with his mother, Yael, who has waited more than 19 months to be able to embrace her now 21-year-old son.
Edan Alexander was 19 years old when he was captured from an Israeli military base on October 7th by Hamas militants. And now he is finally
safely back on Israeli soil, set to be reunited with his mother.
Once he is able to embrace his mother, he will then be airlifted after initial medical checks are done to a hospital, Ichilov Hospital here in Tel
Aviv, which is actually right in front of me, near Hostages Square.
And from there, he will get a full kind of, you know, body of medical examinations to see what kind of condition he's in.
We do know that he's already spoken with his mother while he was in that Red Cross vehicle and told her that he is OK. And we have seen that picture
of him standing on his own two feet right next to a Red Cross official, as well as several mass -- Hamas militants.
So again, we can't draw too much, too many conclusions from that one photo, but at least the fact that he is standing on his own two feet, that he
didn't have any kind of visible wounds from this kind of waist-up photograph is a positive indication.
His father, who phoned into Israel's channel 12, said, that's my boy. So at least they are recognizing him and he does seem to be at least, have a
baseline level of -- of being in a good condition here. But, of course, we'll get much more information on his condition in the coming hours.
GOLODRYGA: Just to imagine what that reunion will be like in just a moment's time now with his mother, Yael, his mother and his father, Adi,
have been fighting for his release over 18 months now since October 7th.
And reminding our viewers, he was two and a half months old when he moved from Israel with his family to the United States, so very much an American
here as well, an American story and his neighbors there in Tenafly, New Jersey, waking up very early this morning in anticipation of this great
moment.
[12:55:07]
Can you just talk to us, Jeremy, in what has become almost like a second home for you and for those that have covered this story and that is Hostage
Square. The importance of the gatherings there every week, if not multiple times a week over the last 18, 19 months.
DIAMOND: Yes. I mean, people who come here come here for a variety of reasons, right? Sometimes they come here to -- to experience things
together, whether it is moments of -- of extreme despair and grief or these moments that we are seeing right now of extraordinary joy.
And indeed, there has been so much celebration here today among Israelis, hundreds of whom have come here to watch these live pictures on their
screen to -- to follow every twist and turn of Edan Alexander's journey out of Hamas captivity, his first moments of freedom, which he is now finally
experiencing.
And indeed, Israelis here in this small country feel connected to the stories of all of these hostages. They know them by their first names. And
today, they are able to say, Edan is free and everyone in Israel will know what that means.
ASHER: And, Jeremy, just remind us what happened to Edan Alexander on October 7th. I mean, obviously, as Bianna was just saying, he's somebody
who grew up and spent most of his life in Tenafly, New Jersey after high school. He decided to move to Israel. He joined the IDF.
And then, of course, he was abducted from that military base and dragged into Gaza. Walk us through what happened.
DIAMOND: Yes. Edan Alexander, you know, volunteered to come back to Israel to serve in the Israeli military. He was 19 years old, serving on a
military base just outside of the Gaza Strip. One of the bases that was stormed by Hamas on October 7th.
He was captured, dragged into Gaza, where he has been held for more than 19 months now. Little has been known about the conditions in which he's been
held, but of course there were signs of life from other hostages who were released during the last ceasefire agreement. Hamas then released a -- a --
a hostage video in which Edan Alexander appeared about a month ago now.
But then there was this uncertainty, this wrench that was thrown in, as Hamas said, that they had lost contact with militants who were holding
Alexander hostage. And they said that that was due to an Israeli strike, saying that they didn't know whether Alexander was still alive.
And obviously the news last night that Alexander would be released also confirmed that he would be released alive and that he was indeed alive and
well, ending a period of several weeks of real uncertainty for his family.
But again, now he is back on Israeli soil, embracing or will shortly be embracing his mother.
His father, Adi Alexander, came on another separate later flight from the United States. He's actually on a helicopter, en route to that Re'im base.
And soon they will all be together.
As well as we should know, Adam Boehler, the U.S. Hostage Envoy, Steve Witkoff, the Special Envoy for the Middle East, who were both instrumental
in this agreement to get Edan Alexander released and who will be instrumental in the coming days as to whether or not there will be a deal
to release more of the 58 hostages who still remain in Gaza.
GOLODRYGA: It's nights like these that give so many people hope in a time of despair now, which has seemed to be endless for so many months. But
seeing the return of a hostage alive, news that perhaps ceasefire negotiations can indeed resume and the fighting possibly stop for at least
a short period of time, more hostages come home.
Alon Pinkas, these moments of optimism remind you of all the work that goes into making them happen. And the fact that all of the Israeli hostages and
families that I have spoken with, that Jeremy that we've all interviewed, over the course of the last several months, have time and time again
reiterated the role the United States has played here.
And since the election of President Trump, many of these hostage families say they have Steve Witkoff's number on speed dial. They speak to him a
number of times a day, the same for Adam Boehler.
I mean, there is a real investment here from the United States on the part of these hostages. And the question is, will it continue to go forward now
that -- I mean, listen, we still have Americans who's remained, sadly, they are no longer alive. Their remains are still in Gaza and President Trump
reiterated the fight to bring them home.
But now that we have the last live U.S. hostage back at home with his family in Israel, what role will the U.S. have in your view?
PINKAS: Well, that's -- that's the big question. I mean, I've heard like you and like Jeremy from families how Steve Witkoff and Adam Boehler are in
touch with them and how indebted they are for this invariably important connection that they have.
But, you know, at the same time that we're all happy to see Edan Alexander being released, people are split screening this practically and also in
their minds. There's one Edan Alexander, there are 23 live Israeli hostages believed to be alive still in Gaza, and people cannot hide that aside --
you know, aside from their joy and real excitement, they resent the fact that the United States of America went to such extent and length to secure
his release while the Israeli government is not doing the same to those Israelis who do not have a dual citizenship.
And so, the question is right now per -- or the big question, which emanates from your question, obviously, is, will the U.S. use this to
follow up and bring about a broader deal that would inevitably mean the end of the war? Hamas, believe it or not, signaled already that they are more
than willing and more than ready to do so. They even, you know, flew some - - launched some trial balloon saying that they're willing to disarm, but remain a political force which runs contrary to Mr. Netanyahu's, you know,
bravado and declarations about destroying Hamas and eradicating Hamas. And so, the question is how committed the U.S. will be.
Because in the past, as you've -- as we've all seen, the U.S. was very much committed and then disappeared to Ukraine, to Greenland, to tariffs and
then back -- and then came back. And so, the question is, is the U.S. now committed to get this over with because only the U.S. can? And Mr. Netan is
extraordinarily anxious to see what Mr. Trump is going to do, and he has very little leverage as we spoke in the previous segment.
And so, you know, it's -- we'll probably know the answer to this within a few days. Will, Mr. Trump, Mr. -- as long as in he's in the Middle East,
the issue will be dealt with, and I'm talking about President Trump. But in terms of Mr. Witkoff who does the day-to-day and Boehler -- and Adam
Boehler. We'll see in the next few days whether or not they can remain engaged or whether or not they move to Pakistan or Ukraine or Iran or
whatever.
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: Do stand by for us, Alan, because I just want to sort of recap our audience on the breaking news in terms of what we're
waiting for, just to remind our viewers what we're waiting for this hour.
We have gotten some breaking news this hour, and that is Israeli-American Edan Alexander is now in Israeli custody. He's with the IDF. Crowds have
been watching the developments pretty much all day in Hostage Square Tel Aviv, where it's just about 8:00 in the evening. A Red Cross convoy
carrying Edan is now in Israeli territory. We know that he's spoken with his mother, Yael. She flew from Tenafly, New Jersey, which is where he grew
up. She's about to be reunited with her son at the Re'im military base. And obviously, she's had a really grueling 19 months.
I want to bring in Jeremy Diamond again. Jeremy, you and I were having a really interesting discussion about the level of unity among Israelis. And
if we could just pull up the video of the Re'im military base, that particular area outside the military base. We see these yellow flags,
right? The yellow flags have really been a symbol of unity, of solidarity, of the cries of the Israeli people to really bring these hostages back as
soon as possible.
You were essentially saying that, you know, Israel is really unique in this beautiful way, in that there is just so much unity in just in terms of
people calling for these hostages to be released. People who don't even know these hostages, really feeling like they're a member of their
families. But at the same time, Israel is also deeply divided when it comes to the politics of all this, when it comes to the strategy of the Netanyahu
government in terms of how he should proceed in Gaza, walk us through that juxtaposition, please, Jeremy.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. I mean, in moments like this, in moments like today, you certainly do feel the unity
of the Israeli public, as everyone is sharing in the joy, everyone is glued to their TV screens or their phones, you know, watching every twist and
turn of Edan Alexander's journey out of captivity and towards freedom.
We felt it as we saw hundreds of Israelis here jumping for joy as they learned that he had spoken to his mother, that he was alive and well, when
they saw the photo of him standing on his own two feet. But as you say, there are also divisions about the path forward.
[13:05:00]
A majority of Israelis, we should note, have shown in poll after poll that what they would rather see at this moment is a deal to end the war in Gaza
that also frees all remaining 58 now hostages held in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli prime minister, however, in recent weeks, chose to take a different
direction. He said out loud for the first time that he believed that the supreme objective of this war was the defeat of Hamas and Israel's enemies,
placing it above the goal of securing the release of the hostages. That is very much now being put into question. It, of course, drew significant
opposition from the hostage families who were concerned about what an expansion of the ground war in Gaza and the airstrikes would mean for their
loved ones still held there.
And now, also of course, we are seeing this enormous pressure being brought to bear by the United States, whether that will force the Israeli prime
minister to change directions and to go in the way of a deal, to free the remaining hostages, to perhaps go for a ceasefire in Gaza and ultimately,
end the war there, which is exactly what President Trump said that he hopes will ultimately be achieved by the release of Edan Alexander, and the
subsequent negotiations that will happen in the coming days.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: Jeremy, can I just ask you, it seems so silent there behind you right now, but as you've been there anticipating
all day for Edan's release, what have some of those Israelis who have come to gather, what have they told you?
DIAMOND: Well, the reason why it's so quiet is people are actually watching a short film here in honor of the birthday, that is today, of one
of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza. So, you see that mixture again of the joy of seeing Edan Alexander freed today, but also, of course the fight
that continues to free the remaining hostages. And today amid that joy, we've certainly heard those chance of now calling for the release of all
the hostages.
And I also spoke with the families of some of the hostages still being held there, including the father of Nimrod Cohen, who is actually an Israeli
soldier who was serving at the exact same base as Edan Alexander, they were both the same age. But Nimrod Cohen remains in Gaza. And his father said
that he feels that that's only because his son doesn't have American citizenship.
And so, he raised questions about why the American government seems to be fighting harder for the release of the hostages than the Israeli
governments. And he also said though that he does feel some sense of hope that perhaps the release of Edan Alexander can, you know, unlock these next
steps toward a broader deal that we'll see his son come home.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Well, one can only hope from his lips. Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much. Our thanks to Alon Pinkas as well for joining us in this
breaking news coverage. The last surviving American-Israeli hostage, Edan Alexander, now in Israeli territory, having been released by Hamas at Re'im
military base, soon to be reunited with his family. There is the photo that you see of Edan Alexander surrounded by Hamas militants and the Red Cross
official.
This a historic day, a hopeful day. Hopefully more releases and perhaps more ceasefire in the days to come.
All right. Well, that does it for "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga. I'll be right back with "Amanpour." I'm saying goodbye.
ASHER: I'm Zain Asher.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, thank you, Zain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
