>> hello welcome to our viewers joining from the united states and around the world. israel says it has rescued two hostages from rafah while them conduct strikes in the southern city. we are live in tel aviv with the details and reaction to former u.s. president donald trump about nato members who don't pay, how his words are seen by world leaders and the kansas city chiefs now have back-to-back super bowl titles. and one world famous fan got to see her favorite player win.

the israeli military says two hostages held in gaza for 128 days are now free and back in israel after a covert operation. two men 60-year-old fernando and 70-year-old lewishara are in good condition in a medical facility. they were kidnapped by hamas october 7. red crescent says more than 100 people have been killed in israeli strikes with video showing the aftermath. u.s. president joe biden voiced concern about the potential ground offensive with israel's

prime minister and the efforts to free the remaining hostages. nic tell us how they managed to get these hostages out. >> this was something the idf said they were planning a long time waiting for the right window of opportunity to arrive. that came up this morning. 1:49 is the precise time the idf spokesman said the special forces were able to covertly get into the building where the two hostages were held. they described the idf describes the intense firefight where some of the special forces threw themselves on the hostages to make sure they were protected in this firefight but this was intense hi fast because the idf spokesman said one minute later 1:50 the israeli air force came into play and started laying

down cover strikes in that area to prevent hamas from getting to that building and allow the hostages to be taken out of the building safely, taken outletly under fire taken to a safe place. that time 1:50 a.m. is when the palestinian red crescent began indicating they were receiving casualties from israeli air force strikes in the area, that they're now saying as many as 100 people were killed many injured women and children among them. it's not clear if these two incidents are exactly the same but they come from the same location in rafah and they had happened at the same time. now the idf says when it got the two hostages out, one of them 60 one 70 they were given a quick medical check when they got them to a safe area and taken on helicopters to a hospital just outside tel aviv and to give an idea how fast the whole thing is, not just this minute

lightning koefrmt operation rated with extraction under cover of fire, the families were called 3:30 a.m. the families said they got a call. the news made public 4:30 huge news looking to the idf to rescue hostages and some of the family members have spoken and been to the hospital and seen their loved ones and spoken describing them as essentially alert in bed pale smiling asking questions about the family. they've lost weight according to family members but of course, among the families of these two men, a huge sense of elation at the moment. >> nic in tel aviv. elliott wonderful news for those families and the hostages of course but it's pretty small if symbolic victory in the grand

theme of things. >> yes, i think it depends on your perspective how you view this. israel will feel encouraged to carry out more raids like this and saying this is where the hostages are and we have to go in netanyahu saying if you're telling us noting to to rafah on this ground operation you're telling us lose the war leave hamas there so this will be seen in that context in israel and remember this is the only second successful rescue of hostages by four months, the only other was a female israeli soldier. they haven't rescued any other hostages so this will be seen as a great relief in israel and also as a symbolic victory as you said. the palestine red crescent saying more than a hundred people we don't know how many are hamas connected but as nic said women and children among

them and i expect this is a fore taste of what is to come. the war to rafah since october 7th there have been strikes on and off but what there will be concern more than a million palestinians displaced from the gaza strip israel says it's planning to evacuate all of them to other areas give them safe passage and enable a ground operation to take place. how are you going to move that many people? there is great concern from the saudis, the european union talking about a catastrophe and the u.n. talking about there being nowhereing to for these palestinians so large concerns about a ground operation when it will happen how it will take place. we understand one israeli official says they want it done finished in time for ramadan but a lot of unanswered questions still. >> you talk about the number of

plns that that region. explain the context here. they all move from every other part of gaza didn't they into this area. that's what makes a ground operation in rafah different. everybody is there. >> it's about half the entire population of the gaza strip. it was 250,000 before the war, now over a million. the population has ballooned. tent cities have erupted. a lot of people went there seeking refuge from where they came. israel says it will provide safe passage in order for them to destroy what they say is four hamas battalions. >> how do they do that and keep track of the hamas terrorists

they're trying to get? >> this is another question that needs answering. it's not just to try to rescue. it's not just the hamas israel wants to kill, especially the leader they believe is underground, they also wanted to destroy the tunnels from egypt into rafah where it is believed a lot of this equipment rockets, launchers, guns, rocket propelled grenades and the tools to build this tunnel israel wants to destroy those so it doesn't allow hamas to regroup and carry out more attacks on israel. >> thank you so much. now the senate is a big step closer to passing a $95 billion foreign aid bill to assist israel and ukraine. the chamber voted on sunday to advance the bill, 18 republicans back the package despite the opposition from former u.s. president donald trump.

it comes after republicans blocked a wider deal that included border provisions. it's unclear where the speaker mike johnson would hold a vote on it. it would include humanitarian assistance for gaza and ukraine. donald trump's comments on nato are facing intense criticism at the same time. here's what the former u.s. told supporters at a campaign rally in south carolina. >> one of the presidents of a big country said well, sir, if we don't pay and are attacked by russia, will you protect us? i said, you didn't pay, you're delinquent. he said yes, let's say that happened. no, i would not protect them. in fact i would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. >> trump's primary opponent u.s. republican candidate nikki haley is calling his comments irresponsible while joe biden says trump will quote abandon on

nato allies. paula choong joins -- hancock joins us from abu dhabi. >> max, we can tell what president trump thinks of alliances and nato because he has been very clear about it when he was president. so now he had threat nentd the past to pull the united states away from nato. he had been complaining that he believed that other member nations were not paying their fair share, they were not paying the recommended 2 percent of gdp toward nato. now, it is true that a majority of those countries do not go to that 2 percent guideline but it's not a binding contract.

other countries pay even more than that. but this is not what donald trump was wanting. he wanted all the countries to be paying more believing that united states was having to share too much of the load, at this point. so we know his feelings about nato. we know his feelings about certain alliances. he never really saw the need for these alliances around the world and many of those relationships that have to be rebuilt since u.s. president joe biden took power in fact we have seen nato being more powerful. there's more unity within nato certainly since russia invaded ukraine, since the u.s. president joe biden was in power as well. so what we are seeing here really is a sense of what could happen if donald trump does win the u.s. presidency again and as you say, there is concern around

the world. we had heard from the nato secretary general for example who said, quote, any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the u.s. and puts american and european soldiers at increased risk. now this is really at the core of nato. it is article v, which is a promise of collective defense if one member nation is attacked then all member nations are attacked. it is really the basis of nato that all member nations would come to the defense of that one particular country, and this is really what president trump has undermined at this point and it does raise concerns that if he does win the u.s. presidency what would that mean for nato itself.

>> paula in abu dhabi. thanks for joining us leslie. this doesn't just affect europe. there are key nato partners in asia that will be worrying about these words. >> that's right. america has important alliance relationships in south korea japan who are always looking back very concerned about what a trump presidency would mean, whether the u.s. would continue to support those countries and remember, those are countries that are sitting in a very potentially very insecure region with china north korea nuclear powers south korea japan of course and have relied on the united states for their security and so there is just a sort of veil of uncertainty that is

hanging over america's allies, but also its close partners around the world waiting to see what happens in this election and i think the surprising thing to me is many more europeans believe that donald trump will be successful in that election in november than the americans i talk to so i think the level of fear and concern and it doesn't matter if donald trump were to remove america's formal commitment. it's the daily blast saying that he might that creates an extraordinarily uncertain and unpredictable environment and here in europe as you know, we are seeing many people say it's time for europe to plan for an alternative scenario than america coming to its defense. >> he does have a point in terms of the money. european countries don't put in as much money and some don't

live up to their promises to contribute but when we consider russia, china, if he goes through with this promise effectively weaken the power of nato without america behind in it the same way, it does open an opportunity to russia and china to fill that vacuum on the world change and does change the world order. >> well, i think certainly putin is enjoying the fear that donald trump is instill in america's closest partners and perhaps waiting to see if he will have a friend in the white house. but i think you know just to be very clear that call for nato's members to step up their defense spending to 2 percent of the budget that came in 2014 before donald trump and we have seen consistent movement forward.

in 2014 there were only three members hitting that target. looking at top defense spenders it's not the united states. europeans have stepped up a lot, especially since russia invaded ukraine. so i think the commitment is serious, the direction of travel is correct. i think europeans know that they need to do more but there's a question of how do you motivate, and creating chaos and fear and signalling support in effect to russia is not a sound way to do it, not only not sound for europe but also for the united states. >> can i also discuss how this plays into the u.s. election campaign and that's what trump is all about right now, and highs helped isn't he perhaps by this latest special counsel report looking into how president biden handled classified documents and one

headline out of that was concerns that his age and his memory. that's a huge challenge isn't it for biden in this campaign now, and he's got to address it some how because democrats are frankly concerned about it if you look at all the polling. >> absolutely and the most extraordinary thing is that report was actually good news for president biden. they decided not to pursue charges. they put it to rest, but then as we know, a counsel decided to spend a significant amount of time talking about the president's age and over the weekend we saw the media on all sides just pick un -- up on that claim and run with it. nobody is saying is this a president who has the ability to build coalitions to get major policies through spending on infrastructure to increase jobs to drive forward american growth to create a strong economy. they're saying, does he remember the names of foreign leaders on

television, and we know this is a problem for president biden. it's been a problem for president biden when he was a young president. we also know that it's a problem for president trump. so i think there is sort of a question of how do you communicate, how will this president and his team come up with a strategy to communicate this effectively to own the age to talk about wisdom and judgment and the policies, but right now they're fighting an uphill battle because quite frankly even the media that generally are more fair when it comes to the president are not helping him out. >> leslie thanks for your insight. so much more we can talk about with u.s. politics but we will have time of course. now the other big story in the u.s. the kansas city chiefs back-to-back super bowl champions. a live report from the stadium in las vegas next on cnn news room.

>> super bowl doesn't always live up to the highway patrol the kansas city chiefs beat the san francisco 49ers with a touchdown in overtime, the first team in 20 years to win

back-to-back super bowls. in kansas city thousands gathered in the cold to cheer their crowd and the team and the chiefs most famous fan, taylor swift, was at the game to congratulate her boyfriend, travis kelce with a kiss. andy live in las vegas. sounds like such an exciting close game. >> max, the first super bowl here in las vegas, certainly lived up to the hype. didn't look that way early on. this game was a defensive struggle first half punt after punt after field goal fumble but in the end patrick mahomes with the ball to win the super bowl and we are just watching a legend. he did having he needed to do to get the chiefs on top. as you mention taylor swift was

here to support her boyfriend travis kelce in super bowl lviii. on the jumbotron she drank her drink for her fans. punting this is the may that changed the game, the ball hit a niners player foot they can't field it chiefs recover swinging the momentum, next play mahomes and mark kwez valdez chiefs lead 13-6 niners purdy to jennings, the niners go back on back, moody's extra point blocked, that would be huge because the chiefs would drive down and kick a field goal in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter to send this game to overtime, the second time in super bowl history, niners get a field gold first poll says and mahomes with the ball needed to go 75 yards to win it all and did, finding a player to win the super bowl.

chiefs third super bowl title in 5 years, taylor swift joining the celebration giving travis kelce a smooch and hug, mahomes named the mvp for the third time. lots of people counted this chiefs team out but mahomes says they're one resilient bunch. >> not only the adversity we battled through this year and guys staying with the porter goss keeping believing, you just never know how it's going to happen. it's a true role in the plochls and we were able to come through and be super bowl champs. >> knowing we were going to get everybody's best shot to have the doubters, to have the road that we went through, man, it meant everything to even get to this point but to find a way through and veshszty for four five quarters man i couldn't be more proud of the guys. >> mahomes the fifth quarterback

ever to have three super bowl titles the chiefs the first to go back-to-back since 2005, coach andy reid said he was going to celebrate by eating a cheeseburger and said the same thing after winning in las vegas. there's a in 'n out across from the stadium, maybe he's there now. >> wondering how you and the sports fraternity talk about a player's girlfriend all the time balls it does get a bit ridiculous and still skrimd as taylor swift's boyfriend. >> well, you know, let's see. when she injected herself into this nfl world, it was phenomenal. we had never seen something like this before so it's been a lot

of fun the past three months her attending the game getting the cut away seeing her reaction. here in vegas at the super bowl, it was probably 70 percent 49ers fans. they have an easier trip and video haven't won since 1995. when they showed taylor swift on the jumbotron they booed her which i'm sure is the only stadium in the country booing taylor swift but in the end chiefs fans so happy and we talked all season the nfl was scripted because of these endings that keep happening and what an ending here taylor swift celebrating, big kiss with travis kelce winning super bowl lviii. >> she's bringing more fans and andy shoals thanks for that. now concern mounting over possible israeli ground

operation in the southern gaza city of rafah. a closer look next at the situation there.

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>> welcome back to our viewers in the u.s. and around the world. two hostages held by hamas in gaza since the october 7th attack are back in israel after being rescued that the word comes from the israeli military which said the two men are at a medical facility in tel aviv in good condition. the operation took place in the southern gaza city of rafah where the idf forces say they

did strikes. palestinian red crescent says more than a hundred people were killed in those strikes. joining me deputy editor-in-chief of israeli newspaper haretz. it's clear the government sees it as a triumph of course getting those much missed hostages, a huge moment for the families. does that give the government more momentum to push into rafah you think? >> well, max this rescue operation is definitely a positive heartwarming moment not only for luis and fernando's loved ones but every family waiting for hostage safe return home. at the same time it's important to remember this was a tactical

victory and much larger tragedy. there are 134 hostages in gaza as we speak so in order to bring them all home, a difficult deal with hamas is still very much needed because this means israel has to pay a price for their release, including the release of more hamas prisoners and a cease-fire. this has become a highly contentious political issue here in israel. >> a lot of work going on toward some sort of deal. we saw antony blinken and european leaders putting the work in. it hasn't happened because netanyahu presented the terms hamas presented to him. we don't node the exact terms. we can't read much into that but what is next? >> so some on the israeli far right, which are some of netanyahu's voters are just note willing to pay the price. it is very likely they will now

use this operation to claim that military means are better than a diplomatic deal but with all the joy on the safe return of luis and fernando a larger deal will still save more lives plain and simple so that is still what most of the hostage's families expect from their governments. >> concern expressed in parts of israel as the rest of the world about the number of civilian casualties coming outs of all this, going into rafah is going to create a much higher chance of civilian casualties because many have fled there. what will be the reaction in israel to that risk? >> so there are definitely parts in israeli society that are aware of that risk and in the government i'm sure as well. we do not know what are the plans, but as i said, a deal will save a lot of lives on both sides. so it should still be the

preferred option. the problem is, as i said, it's a very controversial issue within the public itself. >> in terms of palestinians in this area of rafah, they don't really have anywhere to go. that's the truth, isn't it? but the israeli government could mitigate that by saying we are going to find a way of getting civilians out. then the problem is how do you filter the civilians from the militants they're trying to target. >> so that's what the world is currently demanding of israel if there's an operation in fraup civilians should be vaxxed but as you said it's not that simple. this is a very complicated issue. egypt has to be in the picture and egypt doesn't necessarily support that. so i think this is going to be very plusy of course, as war is,

but if there's still a way to prevent that and also release the prisoners i personally think and also most of the families of the hostages think that this will be a better option. >> there's only been two i think successful extractions of hostages as i understand it. it's quite a difficult argument for netanyahu to make that the military extraction of hostages is more effective than any deal, as you've been talking about there. >> well, the problem is that you know the people who oppose the deal will use it to show that there is another way. of course you know a deal will save again more lives on both sides, but they will still try to claim that the military is able to release some of the prisoners without a deal. >> you would be aware that in america a lot of critics of the

administration and the way they've handled all this are saying it doesn't feel as if there's any sort of currency that the u.s. has with any sort of deal negotiations because they haven't had any success so far and obviously in washington there's a huge amount of support for israel unconditional support. arguably. do you think, you know, how much weight really is for netanyahu government putting into the opinions of the americans, frankly right now and antony blinken in particular? >> it's no secret this is a controversial issue in the united states not only within israel but i'm not sure the american support is totally unconditional at this point. we do so more demands. i would also say the united states did manage to break a deal in the first round when some of the other prisoners were

released. of course it was qatar, egypt and all the different players. the united states had a massive part in it, so i'm not sure that they can't manage it this time. i mean, this is last moment pressures within negotiations framework so we have to remember also that this is an ongoing negotiation at the very last moment and there's always also both sides kind of threat with different scenarios and means. for example, hamas also threatened yesterday that you know, if israel doesn't meet all their terms, which some of their draconianian, there will be no deal. >> thanks very much from israel. u.s. democrats secretary lloyd austin is back in hospital with quote symptoms suggesting

emerging bladder issues and transferred his duties to deputy hicks. cnn's priscilla alvarez has the latest from the white house. >> the pentagon announced on sunday the defense secretary austin was transported to the hospital for what they describe as symptoms suggesting and emergent bladder issue after the secretary was hospitalized in january for complications following prostate cancer surgery. he was discharged in mid january but the episode caused a firestorm on capitol hill and the white house because the president and lawmakers did not know in early january that he was hospitalized ordinary for other reasons. austin has come out and apologized saying he would better communicate in the future and that is what the pentagon is doing today, also taking note in the statement that white house and congressional notification

have occurred. now again he was admitted to the hospital for this emergent bladder issue, the pentagon maintaining they will provide updates as they have them. priscilla alvarez cnn the white house. >> police in texas are trying to figure out why a woman armed with a long rifle entered the church of tell van gist joel ostein and began firing. >> this happened between services at joel's lakewood church in houston, texas, the afternoon serviced finished, penal were leaving but the spanish service was about to begin. according to the chief of police, troy finner it was about 2 p.m. when a female shooter entered. >> she entered the building. she was armed with a long rifle. and a trench coat with a backpack, accompanied by a small

child, approximately 4-5 years old. once she entered, at some point she began to fire. i want to compliment the off duty officers who were working extra employment here. one tabc, agent four years of service, 38 years old, hpd off duty officer 28 years old, two years of service. both officers, officer and agent engaged, striking the female. she's deceased here on the scene. once she went down, officers record back to us that she threatened that she had a bomb. so, we searched her vehicle our bomb squad. and also the backpack. no explosives were found.

but she was also spraying some type of substance on the ground. >> houston's fire chief samuel peña says the bomb squad on scene hazmat went through the entire building to make sure nothing else was found them. did not find any explosives at all. they believe this is an isolated incident but it is a criminal investigation that is just beginning. cnn, new york. >> and tragedy striking the world of distance running, the fastest marathoner in the world and his coach killed in a crash in kenya. more on that after the break.

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♪♪ visit your volvo car retailer for special offers during our presidents' day sales event. >> u.s. national transportation safety board confirms there was precipitation at the time of deadly helicopter crash in california killing all six on

board including two figures in nigerian financial sector. the latest from lagos. >> the ceo of a major nigerian bank was among six people killed after a helicopter crash friday near the california border. he his wife and eldest son were on the flight. while the former chairman of the nigerian exchange was also on board. they were in an airbus helicopter which crashed just after 10 p.m. pacific time and burst into flames near an interstate. the incident has plunged the nation into mourning with the nigerian president speaking of shock and grief.

referring to the deceased as exceptional nigerian business leaders. wig way was described as colossal figure, a renowned philanthropist who funded the education of hundreds of children. at the time of his death he was building a university to offer world class education to african-americans, the group said. his impact also extended to the arts. he was a renowned arts collect earth and also a long-time sponsor of shows on cnn. investigators say they'll return to the crash screen sunday to continue documenting the site ahead of preliminary investigation reports to be released in the coming weeks. cnn lagos. >> marathon record kelvin kiptum killed in a car crash.

he was driving sunday. both men died at the scene. kiptum set the record in chicago 2 hours and 25 minutes. authorities in trinidad and tobago looking to clean up oil spill not under control. they say it happened wednesday when a ship overturned but don't node what kind of boat it is because only the hull is visible. officials say the coastline is black enned. government agencies are assisting as well as a thousand volunteers. coming up, the hottest new reality show is no reality show at all. millions of people breathlessly following the nine-month long world cruise on tiktok. that's just ahead.

>> in england, king charles went on his first public outing a

week after buckingham palace announced he has some kind of cancer. that's his estate. the palace shared monday that charles was sent back to his public duties while he's getting treatment. he's expressed gratitude at the public support. hundreds of people are sailing on the world caribbean cruise ship the serenade of the sea. the trip is traveling to 7 continents in nine months. the passengers are making themselves at home many filming the journey and tiktok is obsessed. linda kincade shows us why. >> we are microfamous.

>> more than 60 countries and many wonders of the world mapping the itinerary for this somewhat famous couple. they're aboard the world caribbean on the ultimate world cruise which set sail in november. hundreds of thousands of people are tuning into her daily videos. with their children grown they spent $150,000 documenting the good the bad and the comical. these digital nomads have gone viral. >> we never expected so much minute the world cruise. we have been planning this for two years and you know for us it's a trip of a lifetime you about we did not know so many other people would be interested.

>> it's not the first armed the world cruise. why is this getting attention? the internet. >> historically they would have not been able to film themselves in the drake passage and now they can. >> social media finals accustomed to uploading voters a couple or more times a day, the creators using their talent as they cruise the seas. >> we want to see people doing their laundry. we want to see people sitting on deck having a nice time. it's the kind of brilliant drama that's no drama and i think that's why we are loving it. >> it's safe the say accounts like theirs will keep people on their toes. for some passengers receiving unexpected fame, others are simply enjoying the experience with family. >> i think it's really interesting that the world is so obsessed on tiktok with the cruise. the best part of the cruise is

going to sleep and waking up in a new country, just going to sleep and waking up with a new experience. the worst part is trying to pace myself and not eat too much food. >> with 7 months to go viewers should stay tuned to this reality show at sea. linda kincade. >> have a good time. thanks for joining me. i'm max foster in london. i'll be back with more news after this short break.

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