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What We Know with Max Foster

Emotional Reunions After Hamas Releases All Living Hostages; Israel Frees Nearly 2,000 Palestinian Detainees; Trump & Other Leaders Sign Gaza Ceasefire Deal In Egypt. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired October 13, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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

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MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: A day for reunions and renewed hope in the Middle East. This is WHAT WE KNOW.

For the first time in more than two years, all living Israeli hostages in Gaza are back home with their loved ones.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: Just one of the emotional reunions in Israel today after Hamas released 20 hostages under a ceasefire agreement. Israel says Hamas has

also turned over the bodies of four deceased hostages to the Red Cross.

In exchange, Israel released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. The vast majority have been held without charge.

Reunions in Gaza and the West Bank were relatively subdued, as Israel ordered Palestinians not to celebrate. One hundred fifty-four Palestinians

who were serving long term sentences won't be going home. They were forced into exile in Egypt.

A short while ago, U.S. President Donald Trump put the finishing touches on an historic day. The president was amongst more than 20 world leaders

gathered in Egypt for a summit on the future of Gaza, where he signed the 20-point ceasefire agreement. Mr. Trump urged those leaders to keep the

momentum, the cooperation and the goodwill going in the region.

The U.S. president says the deal represents an answer to the prayers of millions of people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is the day that people across the region and around the world have been working, striving, hoping

and praying for. They have done things over the last month that I think were really unthinkable. Nobody thought this could happen. With the

historic agreement we've just signed, those prayers of millions have finally been answered.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Becky Anderson in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, with that summit took place. Obviously, Trump center stage. Becky taking a lot of the praise, but

people were giving it to him because they really feel as though this wouldn't have happened without him, right?

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. And it would be difficult to overstate the enormity of what we've seen today over the hours since Donald

Trump has been in the Middle East, first in Israel. And we witnessed those scenes, those heartwarming scenes as the hostages were returned to their

families and the Palestinian prisoners were released in no small part, that success is down to Donald Trump and his team alongside the mediators and

guarantors of this deal that is Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.

But, you know, you would find it very difficult to find anybody in this region, in this room today where I am now, who don't put this success in

getting this ceasefire deal across the line down to one man. And that is Donald Trump. And you hear that echoed around the rooms in this summit. I'm

at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit of peace site. And it was in this room, in this very room here that we saw Donald Trump flanked by the president of

Egypt, and those two mediators, guarantors, Egypt and Turkey, where we saw Donald Trump sign the agreement to end the war in Gaza.

He talks today in has talked here, and at the summit and at the Knesset in Israel about this being the beginning for peace in the Middle East, as is

signed just up here.

Phase one is over. That is the ceasefire deal. And again, getting that across the line is an enormous feat and should be applauded.

The next stage is going to be really tough, and those in the room and there were representatives of more than 20 countries here, Donald Trump described

him as the wealthiest and most powerful group ever convened. Look, I had my producer do the math, did the math for us, and the GDP of those countries

here in this room is around 30 trillion, give or take.

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And the U.S. in, and that's another 30 trillion, give or take. So that is something like representatives of half of the world's GDP and Donald

Trump's point about that is that this group of people gathered here today from the region, from Europe and from the wider world have gathered to

support the process of ending this war in Gaza and pursuing peace in the Middle East.

And there is no doubt that Donald Trump is convinced that that war is over. And there is no doubt that those gathered here today want to see an end to

this conflict, a successful end to this conflict. Gaza is the through line to potential peace in the Middle East, and many of those gathered in this

room today want to navigate a new Middle East, a new Middle East of peace and prosperity. But how we get there is going to be really tricky, because

the question of the hour today is what is in that agreement that was signed today.

We don't have the detail. We have a 20-point plan. A Donald Trump 20-point plan, which was presented in New York a couple of weeks ago. But it was a

roadmap of sorts.

It began with stopping the conflict. Certainly, getting the hostages released in Gaza, job done to a degree. Some of the bodies of those who are

deceased are yet to be returned. And I was told today by the Egyptian foreign minister that it's going to take some time. And it seems that

Israel has accepted that.

But it's the next stage. What is governance and security look like in Gaza? Will Hamas disarm? These are all in this original pathway, as it were,

roadmap to peace. What will a reformed Palestinian Authority look like? Is this a credible pathway to a Palestinian statehood going forward? And what

does that look like?

The detail is short at the moment. The implementation of this plan, difficult to envisage at this point. So I think at the end of what has been

an historic day, Donald Trump making a speech to the Knesset, Donald Trump here in Sharm el-Sheikh, no Israel, no Hamas, no Iran, even though Iran

was, formally invited to come, but flanked, as I say, by a group of leaders and representatives from countries around the world who have committed to

supporting the process to peace in the Middle East. It's how we get there, which is unclear at this point -- Max.

FOSTER: As you say, Becky, it wouldn't have happened without Donald Trump and the tireless efforts that he made and the pushes he was making. Is

there a concern that he may lose interest or be distracted by problems at home? You know, maybe Ukraine, other issues and won't keep that momentum

going, and then it all sort of falls apart a bit?

FOSTER: You use a really important term there, keeping that momentum going. You hear from everybody those gathered here in the room and those

around this region, this is now all about maintaining momentum.

And when I talk to the foreign minister, the Egyptian foreign minister before Donald Trump arrived today, we had a wide ranging discussion about

many of the points that I've just raised. But when I said to him, how important is it to ensure that Donald Trump is here today co-hosting this

meeting? He said it's absolutely crucial. And he said it is absolutely crucial that Donald Trump stays engaged in this process.

Again, the Egyptian foreign minister was in no doubt that getting here is as a result of Donald Trump. One man, Donald Trump, he said, is what has

got us to this point. The choreography of this is going to be tough, and it is absolutely essential. Everybody agrees that Donald Trump does stay

focused, doesn't get distracted, commits to seeing this process through as it as it were.

And he is insisting today here he made a number of speeches today at the Knesset. And also he took a number of victory laps. It has to be said here

he had a bilateral with President Sisi. He signed and made some remarks here as he was signing with his sharpie the agreement.

And then there were further speeches made a little bit later on before he left to go back to Washington. And he insists that he is committed to

seeing this through. So, you're hearing that from the U.S. president.

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And he's clearly very proud of what he and his team have done. And if you take those words as given, Donald Trump has said he will remain committed.

But I think when you talk to people around this region, I'm not suggesting there's a reservation there, but there is a fear perhaps that Donald Trump

could get distracted.

And they need him in. They need him committed, and they need him to see this through. But again, I want to underscore what we've heard from the

U.S. president. He says, as far as he's concerned, the war in Gaza is over and that this is a new dawn for the Middle East. If you take those words as

given, then he is committed as far as he is concerned, he's going to be tough. This journey. And not an easy one.

FOSTER: Becky, thank you so much. Really, the front lines of history and that amazing space where it all happened today. Thank you.

Well, much of Israel celebrated today as the remaining 20 living hostages returned home. This was the view of Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, where

thousands gathered to mark a moment they had waited for two very long years. Families of the hostages watching on anxiously before long awaited

reunions.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: Reunions, too, in Gaza. More than 1,700 Palestinian prisoners returned home after being freed today from Israeli jails. They arrived by

busload, greeted by large crowds. The detainees had been held without charge by Israeli forces. Many long term Palestinian prisoners were also

released in the West Bank, where they were reunited with loved ones.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMER HALABIYA, RELEASED PALESTINIAN PRISONER: It's an indescribable feeling. I still cannot believe it. Thank God. We used to wait for this joy

to happen, but I am not feeling it because it was a big surprise. We faced an extreme psychological pressure and one could not believe until last

second.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Also some very extremely well extremely solemn live pictures to bring you a convoy transporting the remains of deceased hostages, traveling

through Israel tonight. Those remains have been released by Hamas as part of the ceasefire deal. They're now heading for the national institute for

forensic medicine in Tel Aviv.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond, watching on from Ramat Gan, Israel, joining us, as you can see.

Why only four, Jeremy?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is indeed the question. We know that there are 28 bodies of hostages that Hamas was still

holding until today. That number now down to 24 following the release of these four bodies pending, of course, DNA confirmation by this Israeli

forensic institute, we had known that not all of those bodies would be released today for a number of reasons. Two in particular, one of which is

that, first of all, Israeli intelligence has confirmed that Hamas does not know the location of all of the bodies of those hostages. And so, there is

going to have to be a process that could take days, could take weeks, could even take months to find the those remaining bodies.

And then there is also the issue of recovery. Some of these bodies are buried under the rubble and may be difficult to secure -- secure those

bodies. And so, we know that there's going to be an international committee involved in all of that.

But for today, what we certainly saw was these incredible scenes of joy, credibly moving scenes as these last 20 living Israeli hostages who were

held by Hamas for more than two years, were finally reunited with their families.

And this was not only a significant moment for the families themselves, who, as you can see in some of those videos, were overwhelmed and

overjoyed. But it really is a closing of a chapter for the Israeli public at large, as we saw millions of Israelis fixed to their TV screens this

morning watching all of this unfold. And finally, perhaps now with the release of these hostages, a chance to heal what has been really an open

wound of October 7th, as long as there were hostages being held in Gaza -- Max.

FOSTER: What a day. Jeremy, thank you so much for bringing us that.

Well, earlier, President Trump received a hero's welcome in Israel from this extraordinary banner thanking the president in Tel Aviv, to the

rousing reception Mrs. Trump was given in the Israeli parliament.

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In an hour-long speech, he did a victory lap of sorts, celebrating what he called the historic dawn of a new Middle East.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: And after so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun

rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace.

For so many families across this land, it has been years since you've known a single day of true peace. But now at last, not only for Israelis, but

also for Palestinians and for many others, the long and painful nightmare is finally over. And as the dust settles, the smoke fades, the debris is

removed, and the ashes clean from the air the day that breaks on a region transformed and a beautiful and much brighter future appears suddenly

within your reach.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: To the White House now, CNN's Alayna Treene.

I have to say, Alayna, you get the impression that if he ran for office in Israel right now, he'd be straight into power, an incredible victory lap

today. Many say very well-deserved. What sort of response will he get back in Washington, do you think?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I think he'll get a similar one, in the sense that I think a lot of people acknowledge just how remarkable

getting to this point has been.

We, of course, saw many other times these negotiations come together, seem like they were on the precipice of an agreement just to fall apart. That

happened during the Biden administration. It happened right before the president or right after the president, I should say, entered office.

His envoy, Steve Witkoff, who, of course, was so crucial to these negotiations, had been part of the negotiations toward the end of the Biden

administration. And as the president, President Donald Trump entered office. And then what he had negotiated had also fell apart.

And so, to get to this point, I think everyone is certainly celebrating that. But there's still so much more work to do.

Actually, today, the president was asked, you know, would you say the second part of that 20-point plan that he had put forward, the one that

they had signed in Egypt today, when would the next phase start? And he said that he believed phase two has already started, and a lot of that is

going to be, of course, rebuilding Gaza, but also disarming Hamas. The president brought that up several times in his remarks at different in his

different speeches throughout the day.

And also, the long-term governance, of course, of Gaza. All of that still needs to be figured out. And there are concerns, of course, of whether or

not this peace will hold. The president reiterated over and over again that he believes it will. But again, there is still so much work to do.

But some things, Max, that actually really stood out to me were that he said it's not just about ending this proposal he put forward, the plan, was

not just about ending the war between Israel and Hamas, but longer term peace. You heard him talk about wanting several of the different leaders in

the Middle East, many of whom were crucial to these negotiations and to this -- getting to this point today. He wants them to sign the Abraham

Accords, the, you know, the accords that the president had initially put together during his first term, normalizing agreements between some of

these different Arab countries and Israel. A big goal of his, I know, has been to try and get Saudi Arabia, for example, to sign on to that

agreement.

He also talked a lot about Iran. He said that, you know, the nuclear or the strikes on the nuclear facilities in Iran earlier this year are what laid

the groundwork for this to really be a much more lasting peace. This idea that the threat of a nuclear weapon, that Iran could be holding is no

longer one that creates a dark cloud over all of this. And he kind of signaled that he wants to negotiate a broader deal with Iran.

And I know from my conversations, Max, with White House officials, that's exactly what they're looking at as they look at the broader scope of what

does peace in the Middle East look like? And so, all of that, of course, things that still need to be discussed, but certainly people are

celebrating here in Washington and throughout the country that President Donald Trump was able to bring all these leaders together for that today.

And very striking to see, you know, particularly in Egypt for that summit, that the president kind of gathered all of these world leaders to see them

standing behind him, to see the president pointing to each of them, thanking them all for their role, all of them together celebrating this,

which was truly a historic moment. But again, still so much work to be done.

FOSTER: Alayna, thank you so much for that. So, coming up, the future of Gaza, then world leaders wrapping up that summit on the Gaza ceasefire

plan. We'll take a look at what the next steps might be.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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FOSTER: We continue following breaking news today. The long-awaited release of hostages being held by Hamas for the first time in more than two

years. Hamas and its allies are no longer holding any living Israeli hostages.

Now, the next phase of diplomacy has to take place. A short time ago, a summit wrapped up in Sharm el-Sheikh over the future of Gaza. U.S.

President Donald Trump, along with leaders of more than 20 countries, met to negotiate the final ceasefire plan.

What we want to know is will this summit bring eternal peace to Gaza as Donald Trump promised?

Joining me now, David Sanger, CNN's political analyst.

A very unfair question to ask you David. But one issue we've got is Becky was pointing out is we didn't actually see what they signed today. Why

weren't we given a copy of that?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, let's hope that we get a copy of that. There was something strange about it, which is

it was described as essentially the ceasefire agreement, which I assume to be the 20 points that President Trump put out and got everybody to agree

to.

But who was missing from the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting? Prime Minister Netanyahu or any Israeli representative? The prime minister was invited at

the last moment, but bowed out. And of course, Hamas, who you don't usually talk to or negotiate with directly.

So, if it was a ceasefire agreement, its signed by everybody except the two major combatants backs.

FOSTER: Yeah. I mean, that's a really interesting point. I wanted to talk about Hamas because we are seeing these reports from Gaza, where Hamas is

trying to assert control. There are other rival groups, aren't there, also asserting control, which does raise a big question about the key part of

this next phase, really, which is disarming Hamas. It just doesn't feel like they're up for it.

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SANGER: Well, you know, when the agreement was first put together and sent to Hamas, they agreed to the first part, which was the stage we saw today.

And that was so emotionally wrenching but satisfying, which was to see the release of the hostages. And then a swap of prisoners, Palestinian

prisoners. They never agreed to the second part.

And so, President Trump, in an effort to get something going, basically just accepted their partial acceptance and then declared he had a peace

treaty. Well, what he had was a ceasefire and a hostage for prisoner swap.

But he never got them to agree to disarm. He never got them to agree that they would play no role in governing Gaza. So that's the next part. And of

course, that's been a key demand of the Israelis.

I think that explains, Max, why it was that when reporters asked President Trump today, is the war over, he said, as far as I'm concerned, it's over.

It's done. But when you asked Prime Minister Netanyahu or some of his senior aides, they said, well, certainly the cease fire is on and certainly

the first stage of the agreement has been executed. Those are very different answers.

FOSTER: But we're looking at scenes here from Khan Younis earlier on. I mean, Hamas looked like they're in control. So how long have they got to

organize this force? It's going to come in and govern the area before Hamas is, you know, not quite rebuilt, of course, to what it was, but is a force

again.

SANGER: Well, that raises a question. We may come back and discuss a few weeks from now, which is should they have had the force ready to roll on

the day, of course, that you would do the prisoner swap now? No one wanted to delay the prisoner swap because they wanted to get everybody out as fast

as they could, and they did today. And I think they deserve huge credit for that.

But unless more happened at Sharm el-Sheikh than we could discern, I don't think there anywhere near deciding who's sending troops. What are they

going to do? What are their rules of engagement? How many of them will there be?

You've heard discussion. It could take 30,000 or 40,000. That's a big force. Who's going to train them? Who's going to arm them? How are they

going to be armed?

There are a lot of decisions to be made.

FOSTER: Yeah. David, thank you so much for joining us with your analysis today.

Still to come, reunions in Gaza and the West Bank, as Israeli or Israel releases some 2,000 Palestinian detainees. More details on that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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FOSTER: Despite the challenges that lie ahead in implementing a ceasefire deal for Gaza, U.S. President Donald Trump says peace has arrived,

declaring the war is over. He's praising the deal that led to these emotional reunions in Israel. Today, Hamas released all 20 hostages in

Gaza, and Israel says Hamas turned over the remains of four deceased hostages to the Red Cross.

There have also been emotional reunions in Gaza and the West Bank today, as Israel released some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners overall as part of the

ceasefire deal, the majority were detained by Israeli forces in Gaza without charge over the past two years. They were returned by busload to

large crowds. Two hundred fifty long-term prisoners were also released in the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza, while some were exiled to Egypt.

Nada Bashir is in Ramallah in the West Bank tonight.

I mean, the sheer scale of this release was enormous, wasn't it? It must be very -- it must have been very emotional.

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, absolutely. And of course, there has been a lot of anticipation around this here in the occupied West Bank,

certainly in Gaza as well. As you mentioned, among the 250 Palestinian prisoners who were released were many who were held under long term

sentences, some life sentences, some even multiple life sentences from the people that we had spoken to earlier today.

And of course, important to note that many of them were convicted of serious offenses, including murder and even association with political

factions and militant groups, including Hamas. So this is a significant step taken by the Israeli authorities as part of this ceasefire deal, to

agree to the release of these Palestinian prisoners among them, as you mentioned, 150 were deported to Egypt and separately, some 1,700

Palestinians who were detained without charge in Gaza, detained some of them for months, some of them for much longer, were returned today.

And of course, as you can imagine, for many of those returning to Gaza, some of them may have been unaware of the sheer scale of the destruction

that they would return to. And of course, many of them unaware of the fate of their loved ones and family members in the Gaza Strip.

Now, of course, we did see those emotional reunions. We saw a huge crowd gathering in Ramallah to watch as the busses carrying the prisoners

approach the Ramallah cultural palace, where they were then released from those Red Cross buses, reunited with family members.

We spoke to some of them who told us that they weren't even aware until a few hours before the move to the Ofer prison in the West Bank, before

they're released, that they were due to be released. This came as a surprise to many of them. Many of them, as I mentioned, were serving life

sentences.

So, for those family members, this is something that they couldn't have even hoped for prior to the negotiations around the ceasefire deal. So

there certainly has been an emotional day for many. This is, of course, a significant step in the peace agreement, but there is also here in the West

Bank and, of course, in the Gaza Strip, a lot of trepidation around what happens next, whether the ceasefire deal will stick will last. And of

course, what this means for the situation in the occupied West Bank as well.

Important to note that while we did see those significant crowds gathering to welcome the release of those prisoners, there had been prior warnings

from Israeli authorities for no celebrations to take place in previous exchange deals that we have seen, there have been huge celebrations,

cheering crowds, gathering at prisoners, released on the streets prior to arriving to that release point and flags being waved as well.

This was a slightly more muted, a smaller crowd than we have seen in the past. And in fact, we were outside the Ofer Prison in the West Bank earlier

this morning. We saw a quadcopter flying over, dropping leaflets with a warning in Arabic saying we are watching you everywhere, warning

Palestinians not to take part in any celebrations or else they may face detention or even other penalties.

[15:35:12]

So that warning seems to have seems to have been heeded somewhat. We also did see a significant presence by Palestinian police officers and security

forces, so this has felt like a much more controlled exchange process. But it's also important to remember that while here this is being marked as a

moment of celebration, a moment of hope for many, and an emotional reunion for those families who have been reunited with their loved ones. This is

being seen very differently in Israel, where many feel that this is while an acceptable price, a very heavy price to pay.

As I mentioned, many of those released were serving long term sentences for severe crimes, including murder, some of them having killed Israeli

citizens as well. So, speaking to Israelis, we've been hearing from them that this is a heavy price to pay. But of course, in their eyes an

acceptable price given the release of those Israeli hostages today, after two years in captivity -- Max.

FOSTER: Nada -- Nada, thank you so much. Huge day there.

James Zogby is the president and co-founder of the Arab American Institute. He's also the author of numerous books, including "Arab Voices".

Really appreciate you joining us.

I mean, incredible scenes there over in the West Bank you know, huge numbers of Palestinians released and, you know, as many Palestinians have

been telling us, a lot of them were held without charge. So, families desperate to see them.

JAMES ZOGBY, PRESIDENT AND CO-FOUNDER, ARAB AMERICAN INSTITUTE: Yeah. Look, what Israel did in the war in Gaza was just pick up people and detain

them. No charges, no trials, no sense of evidence against one. They were hostages as well. And people died in captivity. There's been no discussion

about that.

One of the things that has rankled, I think Palestinians and Arabs generally is the way that we've seen the faces of the Israelis held

captive. We've met their families. They even spoke with the Democratic convention. There was no such humanizing of the Palestinians who've been

held.

And so, it -- and look, one thing that just gets me of the 1,700 returned to the West Bank imagine these guys picked up in the early part of the war

going back. They don't go home because there is no home. There is no neighborhood. In many cases, their families have been killed in the last

two years.

This is going to be a pretty devastating experience for many of them. And I think we need to consider that.

FOSTER: Yeah, that perspective will be, incredible, wouldn't it? Won't it?

I just wanted to talk about something that David Sanger mentioned, that we had this big signing ceremony today, and were not going to underestimate

what Donald Trump achieved here. Was incredible moment, wasn't it? From both perspectives, hope on both sides being expressed today. But he did

point out that neither Hamas nor Israel were at the signing ceremony.

So just explain to us how these other Arab leaders are somehow going to guarantee this when you didn't actually have Hamas in the room?

ZOGBY: Look, I don't think that they can guarantee and I don't think that anything will happen unless Donald Trump is committed to cracking the whip.

Especially on Israel as he goes forward. We will not get to a second phase.

Netanyahu has been very clear to his supporters that there won't be a second phase. He's not going to return any more land. He is not going to

agree to have the P.A., even the Palestinian authority in Gaza. And he wants to retain control and military presence there, all of which are terms

that would be anathema to any Arab.

I think the Arabs turned out because its Donald Trump and they're nervous as many countries in the world are nervous about crossing Donald Trump. But

the reality is that much less has happened than Donald Trump has said has happened.

This is not the greatest day in the history of humanity. The war is not over. Donald Trump got his photo op, a series of photo ops but when push

comes to shove, we don't know if we get to phase two, and we don't know if we get there unless Donald Trump actually cracks the whip and says, were

getting there.

Hamas doesn't have a choice. At the end of the day, but its Israel that has the choice, and it would be very difficult to get Arabs to go to phase two

unless Israel agrees to whatever terms are finally put on the table. It can't just be the burden is on Hamas. The burden has to be on Israel.

They, after all, have committed this intense massacre of humans, of destruction of property. The creation of a toxic area where its going to be

difficult for human life to continue in many ways.

[15:40:04]

And there has to be accountability for that. And there has to be a government that is held on the dock and, and to -- and not just answer, but

actually told you have to move forward and deliver for Palestinians because look at what you've done.

FOSTER: Okay. James Zogby, appreciate your thoughts on that today.

ZOGBY: Thank you.

FOSTER: Still to come, going off script moments after Israel's prime minister praised Donald Trump, the U.S. president made a stunning call to

action. Those details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:43:47]

FOSTER: We have been tracking a day of gratitude amongst world leaders. During his address before the Israeli parliament, Prime Minister Netanyahu

personally thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for his role in the Gaza ceasefire deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Welcome to Israel on this very emotional day that will be remembered in the history

for our people. And you, Mr. President, will be remembered in the history of our people and will already be remembered in the history of mankind. But

we, as we say, remember our friends, and we know you are crucial part in bringing back the remaining hostages.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Later, when President Trump took the mic, he made an extraordinary call for the prime minister to be pardoned. Mr. Netanyahu has been

embroiled in a long-running trio of corruption cases and has always proclaimed his innocence. Only Israel's President Isaac Herzog has the

power to issue a pardon, though such a move would likely be deeply unpopular with the Israeli public.

Take a listen to some of Mr. Trump's remarks from earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: This man is a good man right here. These two men are good men right here hey, I have an idea, Mr. President. Why don't you give him a pardon?

Give him a pardon. Come on.

By the way, that was not in the speeches. You probably know, but I happen to like this gentleman right over here. And it just seems to make so much

sense.

You know, whether we like it or not, this has been one of the greatest wartime presidents. This has been one of the greatest wartime presidents.

And cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: What we don't know is how will today shape Mr. Netanyahu's legacy?

Joining me now, David Horovitz, the founding editor of "The Times of Israel".

Thank you for joining us, David.

Will, you know, a lot of Netanyahu's opponents change tack now and give him this one?

DAVID HOROVITZ, FOUNDING EDITOR, THE TIMES OF ISRAEL: I don't think so. By the way, that was an interesting excerpt you played. And you know, there

will be the Netanyahu supporters in the Knesset were very, happy to hear the president call for his pardon. And the opposition rather less so,

seeing it as intervention in Israeli internal affairs, right? And I think that's kind of reflective of the mindset.

So today in Israel, after two years since that Hamas invasion, when 1,200 Israelis were killed and 250 were taken hostage, 251, there's a tremendous

sense of relief and joy because the last living hostages came home, 20 hostages came home.

And it is an opportunity for Israelis to think about healing and maybe pulling together. It's been a very divided Israel. But I don't think in

specific answer to your question, I'm not sure how much it will change Netanyahu's fortunes. He's an incredibly effective politician, and one

wouldn't bet against him anyway.

But it is a very divided country, and just one other thing we should say right away. There were 48 hostages as of this morning. And although all the

hostages came home, only four of the dead bodies have been returned. So there's another 24. And those half the hostages, if you put it that way,

that are still held in Gaza, and it's not clear what Hamas is up to.

And there's already criticism within Israel about the terms of the deal. Why, for example, you were talking before about the 250 life-term

Palestinian security prisoners, including mass murderers who were released. There's a lot of criticism. Why did Israel allow a deal quite like this,

which still gives Hamas a great deal of leverage at the moment, leaves 24 families not able to give their slain, in many cases, loved ones a burial

in Israel?

FOSTER: Yeah. What a mixed day for them. I'm, you know, to be able to see all the living ones come back and the bodies coming back. But they aren't

going to see those bodies.

But our understanding is that Israel does understand that Hamas is trying to, you know, struggling to locate some of those bodies. But you seem to

suggest they're playing a bit of a game.

HOROVITZ: Yeah. The -- you know, I know that CNN, for example, had a story a few days ago where the maximal number of the then 28 bodies that it was

thought would not be returned today was 15 and instead, so far today, and in fact, it's nighttime. So that will be it for today. There have only been

four.

It's been reliably suggested that that at the Sharm el-Sheikh talks that led to the agreement that yielded the events of today, Hamas acknowledged

that it did have about 15 of those 28 bodies. So, yeah, Israel rather thinks that Hamas is up to something. We'll see in the next few days.

FOSTER: Why did Netanyahu not appear at the signing today? I know he was discussing how it's a holiday period. But he did. It was -- he was ominous

in his lack of presence. Wasn't he there?

HOROVITZ: Yeah. I mean, I think that's a really interesting and good and resonant question. Who else wasn't there? That was Hamas.

So, you know, because the terror group that launched this invasion and has vowed to destroy Israel if it gets the chance again, they weren't there.

But Trump's ally Netanyahu, who he came to the parliament to endorse really and support and by the way, secured an invitation for him. President Sisi

of Egypt is not on the best terms with Netanyahu, to put it mildly. I don't think they've spoken in the two years of the war. He was not invited.

And when Trump was asked about this, on the plane on the way here, he said, well, I didn't do the invite. Egypt did the invites. But then he set up, as

far as we know, he set up a call with Sisi and Netanyahu and Netanyahu again, as far as we know, initially accepted the invitation and there was a

lot of -- I mean, euphoria is a bit strong, but there was a lot of enthusiasm, in Israel when it was thought that Netanyahu was going to the

summit after all.

[15:50:04]

Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, whom Trump barred from the United States last month, couldn't speak at the U.N., had to do it by

video. He was invited. Netanyahu was going to be there as well, and therefore Israel was taking its place with those dozens of international

leaders, including regional leaders, discussing the destiny of Gaza. Well, Israel has a huge stake in that. And then Netanyahu canceled the

invitation. And as you said, cited the start this evening of the Simchat Torah, Jewish festival, which ominously, it's the exact two year Hebrew

anniversary of the Hamas invasion.

There's a suggestion, however, that Netanyahu felt that within his coalition, some of whom are extremely, critical of any interaction with

abbas, any notion of Israel ultimately relinquishing control of Gaza that he would -- he would get a lot of criticism from his base about hobnobbing

with some of these people. The counterargument, of course, is the one I made already. Israel kind of needs to be at the table where Gaza's destiny

is being determined.

So I think we are all wondering why exactly Netanyahu not go and was this might have been okay for him politically, but probably not terribly good

for Israel.

FOSTER: Yeah. Interesting. David, thank you for giving us your thoughts on this historic day in Israel and across Gaza.

I will be back in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Live to Tel Aviv, a convoy transporting the remains of deceased hostages arriving at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine in Tel

Aviv. You can see tributes there to some of the people affected here. Those remains have been released by Hamas as part of the ceasefire deal. Crowds

had gathered outside the forensic center. These are some of those floral tributes laid around the building, in fact.

We understand that the remains of four deceased hostages have been transported in this convoy. But of course, Israelis will want to confirm

exactly who they've got.

Finally, tonight, world leaders are also describing feelings of relief and joy, along with the importance of the continuing work towards peace in the

region.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the release of the hostages is a moment of profound relief and must be a turning point towards lasting

peace.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote a peace deal in the region brings hope for peace in other regions where life is still under threat,

adding, "We are working so that the day of peace comes for Ukraine as well."

[15:55:08]

Mr. Zelensky is scheduled to meet with President Trump at the White House on Friday, a source told CNN.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, also flagging Ukraine, he said on social media the hostage release is a tremendous achievement that President

Trump made it happen. The prime minister added that if certain conditions are met, the U.S. leader can get -- get it done in Ukraine as well. So,

we'll see what happens on Friday with that meeting.

I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW.

"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is up next.

END

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