i want to bring in ben wedeman now, ben what's the latest?ust minutes before the truce was set to expire, the israeli military put out a statement saying that in light of the mediators effort to continue the process of releasing the hostages and subject to the terms of the framework, the operational pause will continue. now obviously these's the sticking point was the fact that hamas could only come up with seven women and children, a list of seven women and children and the bodies of a say three hostages who were killed as a result of the israeli bombing of gaza. that wasn't enough for the israelis. that's why we had this delay. but it appears that perhaps because of the presence in israel of u.s. secretary of state antony blinken and the continued efforts by qatar mediator here, the israelis relented and decided to hold their fire for now. >> do we know anything -- is their list of other names or additional people to make it to that ten? we have any idea about that ben? >> no we don't and in fact hamas sort of clearly stated this is all we

ben wedeman in jerusalem, thank you for that.is is something we've been watching closely what is happening in the west bank. things appeared to calm down in other areas, other borders when it comes to hezbollah and what we've been tracking, but the west bank has remained a point where we've seen a lot of action happening, something we are watching obviously incredibly closely. >> absolutely. kaitlan, we will get back to you shortly. >>> as we've been discussing, this is the sixth and potentially final day of the six-day truce agreement to get hostages freed from hamas as they're being held in gaza. just this morning the qataris telling cnn's kaitlan collins that they are optimistic, hopeful that they can soon announce this truce will be extended further. now, that is huge news for the families of the 161 israeli hostages still being held captive in gaza. even before then we are standing by right now for the release of ten more hostages today. joining me now is the founder of the hostages and missing families forum. his cousin and

ben wedeman, you know this area well, gaza well and northern gaza well.ive us your sense of the dramatic images we're now seeing? >> reporter: it's important to point out this is, as nic mentioned, the first town on your left-hand side when you're driving towards gaza city. now, this is often times a town that's very much in the front line, and often times early on when there's a flare-up between israel and gaza, many of the people flee that town, because it's very dangerous. nonetheless, it's really -- if you take into account the difficulty as an invading force of going through this town, because there's a lot more ahead of you, before you actually get to gaza city. so this is -- really just -- the first step in what is going to be a very bloody and difficult battle for the israelis, but let's not forget the civilians really caught in the middle, and watching what's going on, hearing that the israelis have encircled gaza city, i'm reminded what happened here in beirut in 1982. the israelis surrounded west beirut, they had trocontrol of sea, air and all

ben wedeman is in southern lebanon.ut let's start with ed lavandera in tel aviv for the latest on the ground in gaza. ed. >> reporter: today has been described as dire and catastrophic as the situation in particular around that al shifa hospital in gaza city has become more desperate by the hour. this is a key hospital, one of the largest in gaza. for years, israeli military officials have said this is the hospital where hamas military fighters hide underneath those bunkers. it's one of the principal areas which they operate from. that's why they consider this such a strategic point in their military operations on the ground. according to the hospital officials and people inside the hospital, it's coming at a dire cost. one hospital official telling cnn there are a hundred bodies simply wrapped, unable to be taken anywhere. as you mentioned, hospital officials there believe the entire complex is under siege with hospital staff and patients unable to leave the area. that as idf will only say they are engaged in intense f

ben wedeman, cnn, jerusalem. >>> our thanks to ben wedeman for that report. for more on all of this, let's bring in max foster. always wonderful to see you. so these extensions have been for these brief periods of times, we had some planned four days, now another two. wolf blitzer our colleague spoke with one of netanyahu's senior virzs on monday, and he asked him about the pause. let's take a look at what he had to say. >> as long as they keep releasing hostages ten a day, humanitarian pause will continue. so people who want to see the pause continue should be putting pressure on hamas continue to release hostages. >> what do you hear when you hear him talk about that? it really does seem to me, you know, if they run out of -- hamas using these hostages as leverage and there is also a difference between the win and children that they are releasing and military aged men. >> absolutely. so women and children, i mean, they will run out as it were as a bargaining tool as more are released. and then they do get on to the men. and then it becomes the soldiers as w

cnn's ben wedeman is in jerusalem. the attackers, who were also killed afterwards, were brothers, ben. >> reporter: that's right. they were 38-year-old nurad nimr and his brother 38-year-old ibrahim. we've seen video of the actual attack taking place. what you see is their car, which they drove from sur el bahr, which is an eastern suburb of jerusalem, drives up right in front of this bus station. the two get out and just start opening fire on people waiting for the bus. this was at rush hour in the morning. and you see they go back, they try to get back in their car after shooting people, and then it appears bystanders, one perhaps a soldier, one a civilian, draw their weapons and kill them on the spot. so three people dead, seven people injured. and in the aftermath of this prime minister benjamin netanyahu said yes, we should be giving more weapons to civilians and his words were echoed by national security minister itamar ben gvir, and this really underscores the level of tension even though at the moment, at the m

>> ben wedeman for us in lebanon, thanks so much. boris? >>> we're joined by a senior adviser to israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. sir, thank you so much for being with us. i really want to get to reports of casualties near this hospital, gaza's largest medical facility. the cause is not yet clear, but the hamas-run health minute city says it was the idf. can you share with us what you know? was this the result of an israeli air strike? >> i don't yet know. obviously, we will examine the situation fully, but let's be clear. that is the hospital that a few days ago we proved with documented evidence that under that hospital is a command and control center of hamas. it is a command and control, and out of it is a whole spider web of panels connecting hamas' subterranean military terror machine. if you take pictures above ground, you see civilian buildings and you'll see a hospital. below them, hamas has placed its most vital military infrastructure, and this, of course, is a war crime because hamas is using the hospital as a shield,

ben wedeman, cnn. >>> the u.s. conducted its third round of strikes within the last three weeks against iran-related targets in the middle east. the u.s. defense secretary says a safe house and a training facility were hit in eastern syria. the u.s. says iran's revolutionary guard corps and the proxies have been targeting american troops in syria and iraq. >>> the new u.s. house speaker is facing a challenge as a government fenunding deadline looms. and lawmakers show little sign they are willing to work together. >>> chris christie is the first republican presidential candidate to go to israel since the attacks of october 7th. he met with families, hostages and toured where he said he could smell the death still a month later. he insists that the u.s. must continue to give israel what it needs to defeat hamas. >> the most important thing is to provide financial assistance and military hardware to do what they need to do in gaza, regarding the terrorist that attacked them and killed 1,200 of civilians. christie kwa

thank you, ben wedeman. and so, we are going to wait and see if there is going to be an agreement with all of the four sides negotiating. >> and with that i bring in ba ba barack ravid from axios. what are you learning? >> we are learned that there with two mothers not on the list in the first place, and meaning that we are on track for the group of hostages that are going bre leased and the israeli officials say if nothing unexpected will happen in the next hour or two, we will see the process starting. >> all right. just to be clear. the two mothers who were not on the list are now on the list? >> exactly. this is where the things are going. let's go back a bit. when israel received list last night, it saw that there are several children on the list without their mothers. part of the understanding between israel and hamas and the qatari negotiators is that you do not separate the parent and child. this was not the case. so there were excruciating negotiations over the past hour, and three israeli negotiato

as cnn's ben wedeman shows us from the southern lebanese city, residents near the boarder are caughtetween expecting the worst and carrying on with life as usual. >> reporter: a family, a village is in mourning. samira ayyub and her three granddaughters, 10, 12, and 14 were killed in an israeli drone strike on their car sunday afternoon near the border with israel. their uncle samir was in the car in front of them. "their mother was screaming," he crawls, "i want my children? where are my children" as she watched her children burning inside the car. they're looking into claims there were civilians in the vehicle. clearly, there were only civilians in the vehicle. every day the border area is rocked by y incoming and outgoi fire, enough to keep the area on edge. not enough yet to set off a full-blown war. the ancient city of tyre lies just 20 kilometers, or around 13 miles north of the frontier. pulling in his nets, now is not the time to take risks. "us fishermen aren't going far out to sea," he tells me. "we stay close to shore just in case something happens." the normally bustling

cnn's ben wedeman has more. >> reporter: the old in the palestinian refugee camp has seen it all.he young, it is just a beginning of a life crammed together with more than 14,000 people, in a quarter mile square. this palestinian refugee camp in beirut is hundreds of miles from gaza. but for the many people here who lived through previous wars, of war and gaza seems very close. 77 year old -- came here as a baby from her home in what was then palestine. she's seen from near and far war after war, but is still shocked by the images from gaza. how do they have the heart to do this to children, she asks. the pain she feels for all the innocents. when i see israeli children, i think they feel the same way we do when we lose our children, she says. in the end, a child is a child. the mother of a child is a mother, whether she's israeli or palestinian. the scars of the past are plain to see. in september 1982, the israeli military stood by as t their lebanese christian allies slaughtered over 1000 palestinian and lebanese civilians, here and in the neighboring district. fading posters p

ben wedeman, cnn, reporting from beirut. >> and i'm becky anderson in doha, qatar. we will take a quick break. do stay with us. when we return, we will hear from an israeli woman whose mother was kidnapped by hamas. stay with us. [inaudible] the power goes out and we still have wifi to do our homework. and that's a good thing? great in my book! who are you? no power? no problem. introducing storm-ready wifi. now you can stay reliably connected through power outages with unlimited cellular data and up to 4 hours of battery back-up to keep you online. only from xfinity. home of the xfinity 10g network. >>> the 40 inches between israel and hamas is now in effect, and does appear to be -- since shortly after the pause to begin. let's have a look at live images from the rafah crossing where they have now -- 200 expected to cross through the crossing in the coming hours. if the truce holds, the release later today, followed by israel releasing a group of palestinian prisoners. here is what one woman and gaza had to say before this pause took effect. >> we hope for a truce

ben wedeman, cnn. >> still to come, the ordeal of this russian israeli hostage and how moscow helped secure his release. back with that and more in just a minute. you want to be able to provide your child with the tools or resources they need. with reliable internet at home, through the internet essentials program, the world opened up. fellas, fellas. that's how my son was able to find the hidden genius project. we wanted to give y'all the necessary skills to compete with the future. kevin's now part of this next generation of young people who feel they can thrive. ♪ ♪ welcome back everyone, the truce between israel and hamas as known its fifth day, extended by it least another 48 hours. and that should mean the release of more hostages by the militant group. hamas freed two women and nine children on monday, helicopters carried them to a hospital in tel aviv. all 11 israelis have dual citizenship, three french citizens, to german, and six argentine citizens. israel has released another 33 palestinians who had been held in israeli prisons, all of those freed so far are women and chil

>> ben wedeman for us there.nks so much. >>> let's bring in now cnn analyst lieutenant general mark hertling. let's talk about this attack on an ambulance outside a gaza hospital. the international community of red cross says the palestinian ministry alerted them ahead of time there would be this convoy of vehicles, this ambulance included, moving from the hospital in the north to the south. is there any onus on israel to prove or declassified information to support their claim that they thought this was -- hamas was using this vehicle to transport other weapons or some militants? >> there is an onus, victor, on them to produce evidence of what they had. it appears so far it was an ambulance that hamas alerted the red cross seems to be a little bit damning. i'll look at it from the other side. there is a long history of terrorist groups using ambulances to not only transport their fighters but also to conduct suicide bombing operations. i was actually present at two of those in iraq on two separate occasions. we

ben wedeman has more. >> reporter: in may of this yearar, hezbollah put on a s sh for the medidia. operation. leaving no doubt who the foe would be. that was then. this is now. hezbollah posts daily videos of attacks along the israeli border. a low intensity war has been raging, as well as other factions operating in south lebanon. hamas in gaza, and the lebanese israeli border area, seeing exchanges. it's a mulultifront war.r. saturdrday, the hezbzbollah lea proclaimed that the struggle with israel has reached a turning point. regardless of what the zionist do, israel is a different israel. existentially, strategically, , and in terms of security. the day he made the speech saw the heaviest cross-border exchanges yet. the weapons both sides are using, ever more deadly, reaching ever deeper into one another'r's territorory. >> israeli defense minister warned what we're doing in gaza, we can do in beirut. it's a slow burn for now. but it could, at any moment, explode into something much bigger. ben wedeman, cnn. >>> top defense officials from the u.s., japan's south korea have agree

>> ben wedeman reporting from jerusalem for us. ben, thank you very much. want to go to the white house right now and get some reaction to the release of an israeli american hostage. we have a report from the scene. m.j., this is clearly very welcome news for the biden administration. how does this fit into the diplomatic push now to extend this truce? >> reporter: yeah, wolf. this is very welcome news for the white house, the news of the dual israeli-american citizen being released from captivity tonight. she is the second american to be released after 4-year-old abigail edan was released on monday. the president moments ago celebrating the news of benn after learning that she had arrived in egypt. take a listen. >> got some very good news to report. an american woman is safe in egypt. she's crossed the border. i talked with her mother and father. they are very appreciative and things are moving well. she will soon be home with her three children. >> reporter: but keep in mind, wolf, that there is one more american woman that the white house has said they

>> ben wedeman reporting for us from beirut. thank you, ben.reciate it very much. >>> turning now to the humanitarian crisis in gaza where civilians are begging the world to pay attention to their plight. cnn's jomana karadsheh has our report. i want to warn our viewers, some of the images are very disturbing. >> reporter: life before the war felt like a distant memory for video blogger ayat hadura. they were the days when she'd smile in her videos, taking her followers behind the scenes of her work in gaza. for weeks now her posts have been about life at a time of war. >> translator: we now wake up at 5:00 a.m. to queue for bread. we now walk more than six kilometers to fill up a gallon of salty or fresh water. we charge our phones on the streets using the solar power we can find. we crave our favorite foods but there's no power, no gas or water, so we have to make do with canned foods. >> reporter: ayat showed people how gazans survive, neighbors showing the little they have to bake bread in clay ovens. and at times it was about how close dea

ben wedeman has more on the dire situation there. >> reporter: in gaza city they collect the dead lying in the streets and load them on to donkey carts. hundreds perhaps thousands more remain trapped under the rubble. the fate of so many still unknown. we can't contact our relatives he says. we didn't know who has died and who is still alive. according to the ramallah based palestinian health ministry, the death toll the day before the truce began reached nearly 15,000, two-thirds of whom were women and children. a few days of relative calm have allowed people to emerge and see what this war has wrought. discussion on a scale gaza, which has been through so much over the decades, has never seen before. according to the u.n. around 1,700,000 gazans have been does his placed, about 80% of the population. many of those crammed into the south. the pause has allowed people to refly, but so far it has only been a drop in the ocean says the u.n. all the while people are hoping, wishing today's calm will not be followed by the storm. we hope he says the truce continues and holds permanently and

. >>> ben wedeman is following the developments from jerusalem from us. we haven't heard any statements from hamas. what are you hearing from officials there? how are they viewing this two-day expansion, that they clearly -- yesterday, for the first time, had said that they were on board with potentially doing this. >> yeah, hamas has put out a statement on its telegram channel saying they agreed to the extension of this agreement, this truce for two more days along the same conditions as the four-day truce. so certainly this is going to be something of a political bonanza for hamas. it's important to note, for instance, that whenever these prisoners and detainees are released into the west bank, 39 last night, we're seeing a lot of hamas flags. even though hamas doesn't have an open political presence in the west bank. and this has really been a political bonanza for them because they can point to the palestinian authority in ramallah which is considered cor corrupt and they can say, look, this is what we're accomplishing. we are freeing palestinian pris

wolf. >> all right, ben wedeman reporting from jerusalem, ben, we'll get back to you. thank you very, very much. >>> since this temporary truce took effect on friday, 150 aid trucks have been able to reach northern gaza where the devastation is clearly the greatest. they carried food, water, baby formula, blankets among other humanitarian needs. joining us now is ricardo perez, the spokesman for the united nations children's fund or unicef as we call it. ricardo, thanks for joining us. how will another two-day pause impact the work that unicef does? >> thanks for having me wolf. every day counts for children in the gaza strip after seven weeks of terror, violence, bombardments, death, loss, fear, they're having a break now. they're being able to regroup, try to find their family members whom they might have been separated from so it's a day of hope for them and two more days of that is very welcome, of course, not only for them and their families but also for humanitarian actors trying to deliver lifesaving supplies on the ground day after day and with a cease-fire, al

ben wedeman, thank you for that report. kaitlan and sara, a lot moving parts happening right now as we are awaiting the release of the next group of hostages that could happen at any moment now. >> we will be watching that, i know you will be and we'll come back to you if and when it happens and thank you very much, kate kaitlan for join us live from tel aviv. they're pleading for family members to be set free from hamas. shai wefrnger is pleading, and welcome to our show. i know you've been going through it for, what, a month and 22 days now, and i do want to show people the last time, the last images that you saw of your son omer. i want to warn viewers that this video is disturbing. omer is the young man who has been stripped to his underwear and he was lying there. they beat him. he's handcuffed and surrounded by hamas gunmen who then kidnapped him and took him to gaza. have you heard anything about the status of your son since he was taken? >> good morning, sara. i didn't hear about my son since the 7th of october only

cnn's ben wedeman is in beirut and filed this report. >> the lebanese israeli borders saw some of its most intense exchanges of fire thursday, between israel and hezbollah, the day after an israeli strike killed five hezbollah fighters including the son of the leader of hezbollah's parliamentary bloc. according to lebanon's official knew agency, there were almost two dozen individual strikes from hezbollah and israel, mostly focusing on military targets. the group claimed they had fired 48 rockets and the israeli infantry base, and also claimed that they killed four israeli soldiers in a separate attack. israel has yet to comment. israeli military for its part said it launched multiple air artillery strikes and what it called hezbollah infrastructure, and rocket launch sites. there is they, the foreign minister on a two-day visit to lebanon, met with hezbollah leader and as well as to confirm efforts to end the war in gaza, during his time in beirut, the foreign medalist or was on the daily news channel, and warned that if the truth in gaza does not hold, the war will expand. in arabi

ben wedeman, cnn, reporting from beirut. >>> civilians in gaza have been struggling to survive as the war intensified there. one young blogger's video diary has documented the struggles and tragedies people have endured in the enclave amid the conflict. jomana karedsheh has that. >> reporter: life before the war felt like a distant memory for this blogger. there were the days when she would smile in her videos, taking her followers behind the scenes of her work in gaza. for weeks now, her posts have been about life at a time of war. >> translator: we now wake up at 5:00 a.m., we walk more than 6 kilometers to fill up a gallon of salty or fresh water. we charge our phones on the street using the solar power we can find. there is no power, no gas, no water, so we have to make due with canned foods. >> reporter: neighbors sharing the little they have to bake bread in clay ovens. and at times it was about how close death felt as bombs rained down on gaza. >> translator: this might be my last video. they dropped leaflets asking people to evacuate the area. most people fled. people were run

ben wedeman has that part of the story for us from beirut. >> reporter: message on clips circulating on social media, ambiguous but ominous. they are stoking anticipation for a televised speech by the hezbollah leader scheduled for friday afternoon. daily since the 8th of october, hezbollah and israel have been exchanging fire across the border. it is not a full blown war -- yet. >> i feel a sense of doom in lebanon. >> reporter: this professor has lived through all his country's travails. >> some are afraid that we might be on the verge of the apocalypse. so i have never seen this much attention in this country. >> reporter: tensions rising higher thursday afternoon and evening with the heaviest bombardment yet both sides of the border. hezbollah's leader has been unusually quiet but his allies in iran have made it clear if israel crosses red lines in its operations against hamas, new fronts could open. and what are those red lines? >> these red lines for hezbollah, hamas leadership, hamas remaining intact as an organization and of course the palestinian people themselves preventing

ben wedeman, thank you for the details there in jerusalem. boris? we want to get some perspective from if retired u.s. army major mike lions and david sanger. major lions, the idf will focus their target on more precision strikes in gaza in an effort to prevent more civilians from dying. what do you think that looks like? >> israel is going to abide by the laws of the land warfare and they won't target civilians. they'll do all they can to destroy hamas. i think they start back with an air war, turn the drones back on and see what the situation is before the ground forces start to move. they know the world is watching as it deals with civilians. they know they have a tremendous amount of fire power they can use. i think they're going to do all they can, but they'll proceed in a manner to make sure they accomplish their military objectives. >> david, how likely is it do you think we'll see the idf shift tactics? >> you know, boris, i think it's pretty likely. our sources are indicating that in the conversations with secretary blinken the israelis hav

. >> ben wedeman is following this story for us. this hospital is vital for people who live in northern gaza. world health organization calls this the most important health facility in gaza. tell us more about what is happening there. >> reporter: this is al-shifa hospital which is the biggest hospital in gaza. i was treated there after being shot by israeli forces in october 2000. it is the best medical facility in gaza, but the situation there by all accounts is catastrophic and only getting worse. cnn was able to speak with director general of the ministry of health in gaza, and he said that al-shifa at this point is completely surrounded by israeli forces, israeli tanks. and there are israeli drones overhead, that anybody who tries to step outside the buildings, there are several buildings that make up the complex, and anybody stepping outside comes under fire. now, there are 20,000 people taking refuge in the hospital itself in addition to the 400 patients that doctors are treating. we understand that the generators are providi

international correspondent ben wedeman is live in beirut. ben, what can you tell us about what's happening there in? >> reporter: dana, this has probably been one of the most intense days of cross-border shelling between israel and hezbollah. the highest death toll as well on the lebanese side, we have recorded eight people being killed. among them an 80-year-old woman who was in her home and two journalists working for an arabic satellite news network that is largely pro-hezbollah and pro-syria. we did contact the israeli military to get comment from them for the killing of these two journalists. there's been now three journalists killed here in lebanon along the border. the israeli army responded this is an area of active hostilities where exchanges of fire occur. people should stay out of that area. but we also saw hezbollah responded to much of this fire. in fact, i just counted the number of incidents of israeli shelling or drone strikes that come out to 21 today, with 12 incidents of hezbollah firing back. now hezbollah also targeted a

omar. >> ben wedeman. thank you so much. >>> in london today, a large protest and counter protest over the war in gaza. claire sebastian is there. what did you see today? >> reporter: it was a really big turnout. the metropolitan police here in london saying it was around 300,000 who took part in this rally, very organized. this was something that struck me when i was part of this. there were a lot of stewards working with the organizing groups marshalling people along that route. there was some controversy around there because this is armistice day, this is the anniversary of the end of world war i, veterans day in the u.s. people very upset over the impact on children in gaza, very upset over the bombing recently of hospitals. we did see some banners among those participating in the rally on that. in particular, we saw anger directed not just to israel branbut in particular at the u.s. we caught up with some of the protesters. why did you come out here today? >> with palestinians in gaza, so this is all

ben wedeman is joining us now from beirut. there are a lot of questions.iously who is on the list of the 50 who will be released, but what about the list of 300 palestinian prisoners. >> reporter: this list was published this morning by the israeli ministry of justice at 8:00. and the public has 24 hours to raise any objections to the names on the list. obviously this is double the number that is part of the announced agreement because the israelis are hoping that if perhaps this deal works, it maybe can be extended more captives can be released in exchange for more palestinian prisoners. we know on this list there is nobody convicted of murder. we understand that there is somewhere in excess of 280 palestinian males under the age of 18, some of them as young as 14. some of them are affiliated with the various factions of the palestinians, hamas, fatah, islamic jihad the popular front for the liberation of palestine. the remainder are women. but as i said, none of these people have been convicted of murder. so basically teenagers who many of them have take

ben wedeman, cnn, beirut. for a second a few hundred foreign nationals manila add to we'd gotten in a moment we'll hear from an american doctor who's just arrived in egypt, as well as the head of the aid group she volunteered to work for. you want to be able to provide your child with the tools or resources they need. with reliable internet at home, through the internet essentials program, the world opened up. fellas, fellas. that's how my son was able to find the hidden genius project. we wanted to give y'all the necessary skills to compete with the future. kevin's now part of this next generation of young people who feel they can thrive. ♪ ♪ welcome back, 27 minutes past the hour. in past few hours night sky over northern gaza has been lit up by a barrage of flares and explosions, cnn crews reporting what appears to be an escalating israeli air offensive, intense since israel attacked hamas last month. gaza city is completely surrounded by israeli forces, according to idf commanders. we have more details now

cnn's ben wedeman is following all the breaking news. he's joining us from his post in beirut, lebanon, right now. what's the latest? update our viewers. >> reporter: yeah, as far as the jabalia refugee camp goes, today, israel struck for a second time after tuesday. that refugee camp, the israelis said they struck a hamas command and control center, but the director of the indonesian hospital nearby reported to cnn that as a result of that israeli strike on the camp, at least 80 people were killed. he said most of the casualties in that strike were women and children, and the u.n. human rights office is saying that the strikes on jabalia, the most crowded of the eight refugee camps in gaza, could amount to a war crime. now, as far as the israeli ground operation goes, the israeli military is saying that they have breached the hamas defenses in the northern part of the gaza strip. so far, 16 israeli soldiers have been killed since the ground incursion began on friday, but they are -- they do seem to be running into stiff resistance. they

our ben wedeman has more. >> reporter: they turned out in the thousands to hear their leader, hezbollah secretary-general hassan nasrallah speaking out for the first time since the start of the war between israel and hamas. "all options are open, and we cacan exercise them at any moment," he wawarned. already hezbollah and israel are engaged in a deadly exchange of fire along the border. hezbollah has buried almost 60 of its fighters killed so far. it was a speech watched closely across the middle east. while other arab leaders besieged the u.s. to put pressure on israel to relent in its offensive in gaza, hezbollah, well armed and battle hardened, is the only one putting military pressure on israel. tying down in the process, nasrallah claimed, a third of israel's army. the u.s. has deployed two carrier groups to the eastern mediterranean to deter hezbollah and others from joining the fight. nasrallah's response? "i tell the americans threats and intimidation against us and the resistance in the region are pointless." but despite the high expectations for the speech, it ended ambiguous

ben wedeman reports from lebanon. >> reporter: low intensity war between hezbollah and israel along theorder is heating up with each side striking deeper into the other's territory and using heavier weapons. hezbollah leader speaking on the occasion of the group's martyr's day says his militants have begun using attack drones for the first time against israeli positions. and have fired also for the first time in iranian designed missile, short range ballistic missile with an explosive pay load of 500 kilolograms or more than half a ton. saturday was perhaps the most intense day of cross border fire with more than 30 individual incidents. lebanon's official news agency reported that an israeli drone struck a vehicle 40 kilometers or 25 miles north of the border. the dooeps such strike since the 2006 war referring to dozens of recent attacks by pro iranian militias on u.s. forces in syria and iraq, he says if the americans want to stop those attacks, if the u.s. doesn't want this to become a regional war, it must stop the war on gaza. commenting on the situation along the border, saturday

ben wedeman, cnn, beirut. >> still to come here on cnn, more than 200 hostages are still being held in gaza, amid an escalating israeli ground offensive with their families now desperate for any news, cnn's linda kincade sat down with three israelis, more than a dozen family members, the youngest is a 13-year-old girl. >> of all the family members that are being taken hostage by hamas, the youngest is just three years old. what are your hopes for the coming days and weeks in terms of getting news of your loved ones? >> when you see the innocence of someone who has literally her whole life ahead of her, and then you try to imagine where she is now under a tunnel, at gunpoint, she is three years old. we are at the point that any news is good news. >> and we will have that full interview for you in the next hour coming up here on cnn newsroom. in the meantime, i'm john vause, while sport is up next for our viewers on cnn international. for those here in the united states, as well as cnn max, i will be back with more news after a short break. >> for a second day, hundreds of more nationals

. >> ben wedeman takes us inside the refugee camp in jenin to show us the impact firsthand. a warning some of the images are graphic. >> reporter: israeli forces with bulldozers and jeeps enter the camp under the cover of darkness. this has become a routine. and this is the usual aftermath. wreckage and rubble, asphalt roads plowed down to the dirt. once the damage is repaired, there is another raid and it is the same thing all over again. for almost two years, a low intensity war has been raging in the occupied west bank. residents here in jenin's refugee camp say that there have been more than 30 israeli military incursions since august of this year. the camp is home to militants who israel has accused of involvement in attacks on israelis. but here those whom israel calls terrorists are seen as fighters against a decades' long military occupation. this man is not a fighter, he works for the local government. but last week, israeli soldiers took over his home during yet another raid. as he shows me around, the remains of what was a family's life crunch under our shoes. bru

more now from cnn's ben wedeman. >>> in gaza city, the dead lying in the streets. they love the mantra donkey carts. hundreds, perhaps thousands more are being trapped under the rubble. the fate of so many still unknown. we can't contact our relatives, we don't know who has died and who is still alive. according to the palestinian health ministry, the death toll the day before the truth began reached nearly 15,000, two thirds of whom were women and children. a few days of relative calm have allowed people to emerge and see what this war has brought. destruction on a scale gaza, which has been through so much over the decades, as never seen before. according to the u.n., around 1,700,000 gazans have been displaced. about 80% of the population. many of those crammed into the south. the pause has allowed people to resupply, but so far it has only been a drop in the ocean, says the u.n.. all the while, people are hoping, wishing today's calm will not be followed by the storm. we hope that the truth continues and hold permanently and the israelis pull out of the north s

ben wedeman, cnn, tyre, south lebanon. in a moment, will return to israel. country at war where there's international copa volunteers to try and help. more on that, when we return. welcome back. the republicans in congress have publicly supported the israeli government opposition to a cease-fire, or humanitarian pause in the fighting in gaza. on tuesday, lawmakers also welcome some family members of hostages on the one month anniversary of the hamas attack. >> this is not a time to be talking about cease-fires, pauses. hamas gave that up on the seventh, when they went into villages and slaughtered people. when they attacked music festivals, peaceful music festivals. mowing down people. taking more hostages. including american citizens to. >> hundreds of palestinians in gaza, have made a dash for the north, to the south. mamany on foot. they're taking advantage of a corridor, which is open by the idf.f. gusts primary highghway, is open for four hours. many people carry little to nothing. some w wave whitite flags, they help government t i.d.s as they've movev

ben wedeman visited the scene. we want to warn you, some of the video is graphic. >> reporter: israeli forces with bulldozers and jeeps entered the camp under the cover of darkness. this has become a routine. and this is the usual aftermath, wreckage and rubble, asphalt roads plowed down to the dirt. once the damage is repaired, there's another raid, and it's the same thing all over again. for almost two years, a low-intensity war has been raging in the occupied west bank. residents here in janine's refugee camp say there have been more than 30 military incursions since august of this year. the camp is home to militants who israel has accused of involvement in attacks on israelis. but here, those whom israel calls terrorists are seen as fighters against a decades-long military occupation. this man is not a fighter. he works for the local government. but last week, israeli soldiers took over his home during yet another raid. as he shows me around, the remains of what was a family's life crunch under our shoes. bruta

i want to get right to cnn's ben wedeman who is in jerusalem tracking all of this.hat have you been hearing about whether or not this is something that's going to happen and also whether or not if they do agree to that extension does it also include the release of more palestinian prisoners each day? >> reporter: well, we've seen on hamas's telegram channel that indeed they are willing to extend this truce and continue the exchange of hostages for prisoners and detainees. they have, however, said that they would like to see more palestinians released. keep in mind, for instance, that until now 117 palestinian detainees and prisoners have been released, but during the same period, since the pause went into effect, the israelis have detained 112 palestinians across the west bank and, in fact, since the 7th of october more than 3,000 palestinians have been arrested. some of course have been released, but we've seen a wave of arrests every night. for instance, last night 63 palestinians were arrested in east jerusalem and the west bank. so certainly we've seen these sce

ben wedeman, cnn, beirut. >> a senior adviser to the israeli prime minister is warning hezbollah not to get more involved in the conflict. cnn's wolf blitzer asked -- me if israel is sending a message to the militant group? >> i would send a message to hezbollah now, i would say to them, do not -- i think i'm repeating what president biden, said do not, do not escalate the situation on the north. we have no interest in a two front war. if you start one, if hezbollah forces us to respond, we will respond forcibly, and decisively. i hope cooler heads will prevail into ron, and in beirut. i don't think anyone has an interest in another war. if we are forced to fight, we will. let me make it clear, we prefer to avoid this. we want to concentrate on what needs to be done in gaza. we fought to front wars in the past, in 1967, and 1973, we will prevail in a two front war. we prefer however to avoid it. we are watching very closely. we are mobilized and ready. i hope as i said a moment ago, the more rational minds prevail both in tehran, and in beirut. >> the past 27 days have been especiall

>> ben wedeman and melissa bell, thank you very much. >>> still to come tonight, more on the northern border with israel. fears of an expanded war. north of israel in lebanon, daily fights. jim chutsciutto has our report coming up next. >>> an update on shani louk who was 23 years old when she was terrorized and killed by hamas. you may remember her near naked body was tossed into the back of a pickup truck. she was paraded through gaza while crowds spat on her and shouted god is great. her mother held out hope she might still be alive, but shani was confirmed dead this week. we talk to her mother ahead tonight. >>> as we were discussing before the break with ben wedeman, there is continued concern that as israel's military pushes farther into gaza and casualties mount, the already daily skirmishes to the north in lebanon with hezbollah could grow more violent. today intercepted a missile launched from yemen, which israel obviously doesn't share a border with. jim sciutto has more. >> reporter: israeli soldiers gaze north toward lebanon. what they fear could be the next front of this

and ben wedeman is in southern lebanon forjus.en you spoke yesterday, you hadvbuá of rocket fire of sorts in the distance. how much of an escalation are you seeing there today? >> reporter: it has been a continuation of the escalation that really began yesterday. yesterday according to the official news agency here in lebanon was the most expense day since the 8th of october when it comes to cross border exchanges of fire. today we know that there were multiple hezbollah strikes on israeli military positions. also hamas, the military wing, their people basednz in leb one cla cl lebanon claimed to fire rockets in thekç9lddirection of a town the border. and also near to the city of haifa. we heard some of that outgoing fire and we saw several÷h interceptions by the iron dome system. there waséñ also a strike on so israeli vehicles on the other side of the border where several civilians were injured. also reports of another strike that left several israelis wounded. so definitely there does seem to be an escalation rise of extensions

and now, we go to ben wedeman who is monitoring that speech from hassan nasrallah. >> well, it ended half hour ago, and he said that all possibilities are open on the border of lebanon and israel. he described hamas' attacks on israel of the 7th of october as an earthquake, a political-political-military- psychological earthquake. he said what is going on at the border between the crossfire of hamas and israeli solders has resulted in 43 israeli communities in border, and tying down one-third of the israeli army in the north. by and large, he didn't actually come out to say anything concrete steps that hezbollah is going to take going forward. in fact, what was interesting is that just when his speech began, we heard a huge volley of celebratory gun fire here in beirut. massive. when itened, it was somewhat more muted which seems to indicate that those who anticipated a much more fiery speech, and one that actually laid out a plan might have been disappointed. one hezbollah supporter who i have been in contact said, to israel, if you want a war, we are ready. so it does not change th

. >> cnn's ben wedeman is joining us. ben, hamas said it has received the list of who will be released now by israel. tell us who is on this list. >> reporter: at this point, hamas has only put out that there will be 33 people released. that three of them are women. two women and one from jerusalem. she lives very nearby here in occupied east jerusalem. they say in addition to the three women, there will be 30 teenage boys. they have not yet published their names as of yet. we expect more celebrations. but for those, for instance, like this young girl who was arrested at the age of 16 after she stabbed a woman settler nearby here. she will be returning to this area where, of course, it is under israeli control and the israeli national security minister has made it clear that any sort of celebrations by relatives and friends for those detainees and prisoners have been released, are forbidden. there have been instances where families were taken away and tainled while their relative is returned to the house to avoid, to prev

ben wedeman has the latest. >> reporter: rebels seized a cargo ship sunday afternoon, hours after the iranian-backed groups military wing had warned in retaliation, they would target any ship flying the israeli flag or owned or operated by an israeli company. the ship we're talking about, flying under the flag of the bahamas, was bound for india from turkey. israeli officials insist the galaxy leader is not israeli-owned and there were no israelis among the crew. the seizure was a grave incident of global consequence. a spokesman for the houthis confirmed that their forces had seized the ship. he said the crew was being treated in accordance with islamic values. and warned that any israeli ship would be a target. the houthis are part of what is known as the axis of resistance, led by iran. since the war began between israel and hamas, the houthis have fired missiles towards israel. >>> the tax fraud trial for pop star shakira begins in a few hours in barcelona, spain. the singer is accused of not paying more than $15 million in spanish income taxes between 2012 and 2014. shakira denie

ben wedeman has the latest. >> reporter: rebels seized a cargo ship sunday afternoon, hours after the iranian-backed groups military wing had warned in retaliation, they would target any ship flying the israeli flag or owned or operated by an israeli company. the ship we're talking about, flying under the flag of the bahamas, was bound for india from turkey. israeli officials insist the galaxy leader is not israeli-owned and there were no israelis among the crew. the seizure was a grave incident of global consequence. a spokesman for the houthis confirmed that their forces had seized the ship. he said the true was being streets with islamic values. and warned that any israeli ship would d be a target.t. the houthis are part of what is known as the axis of resistance, led by iran. since the war began between israel and hamas, the houthis have fired missiles towards israel. all of which were intercepted. >>> still to come, the tax fraud trial for pop star shakira is keded to begin in spain next hour. what the grammy winner is saying about the government's claim she is a tax cheat. >>> a

>> cnn's ben wedeman. thank you.ing up i'm speaking with two m members of congress about how much persuasion president biden has to get americans out of hama hamas custody. stay with us. >>> breaking news an american citizen has been freed in today's hostage exchange a source confirms to cnn. let's get straight to mj lee. what do we know? >> reporter: jake, this is very good news to report. i'm told by a source family that leigh banine, a dual american israeli citizen is in the hands of red cross officials she has been released from captivity by hamas in gaza. this would mark the second successfully release of an american citizen since the beginning of the truce. she and her husband have been missing since their kibbutz was attacked on october 7th. according to her father she is a high school and civics history teacher and a tour guide at the holocaust remembrance center in jerusalem. remember the white house said they believed there was three american women and children who would be released as part of the deal we s

>> ben wedeman, thank you so much for that update. >>> right now negotiators are racing to extend the truce between israel and hamas. the current deal expiring just hours from now. this as more hostages arrived in israel after being released by hamas. two sources telling cnn that one american hostage is expected to be handed over in the exchange today. let's get more with m.j. lee. she's live at the white house. m.j., what are you hearing from the biden administration? >> reporter: well, brianna, the white house isn't commenting on the fact that an american might be one of the hostages released today. if that were to happen, it would mark the second time that an american citizen is released during the course of this truce. just to remind you, what the white house had initial said they were hoping for and expecting was three americans to be released as part of the initial group of 50 women and children. of course we saw, the 4-year-old israeli american released sunday, but no word from the white house so far on the two other women that were supposed to be released as part of that initi

ben wedeman has the latest. >> reporter: rebels seized a cargo ship sunday afternoon, hours after the iranian-backed groups military wing had warned in retaliation, they would target any ship flying the israeli flag or owned or operated by an israeli company. the ship we're talking about, flying under the flag of the bahamas, was bound for india from turkey. israeli officials insist the galaxy leader is not israeli-owned and there were no israelis among the crew. the seizure was a grave incident of global consequence. a spokesman for the houthis confirmed that their forces had seized the ship. he said the true was being streets with islamic values. and d warned thahat any israelip would be a target. ththe houthis are part of what known as the axis of resistance, led by iran. since the war began between israel and hamas, the houthis have fired missiles towards israel. >>> still to come, former u.s. president jimmy carter and his late wife, rosalynn, weathered more than three-quarters of a essentially together. we are gro and we are your bargain bliss market. what is bargain bliss? you

ben wedeman, cnn, the refugee camp. i want to thank you for watching, i am paula newton and cnn newsroom continues my friend and colleague rosemary church. we'll be right after the break. >>> the power goes out and we still have wifi to do our homework. and that's a good thing? great in my book! who are you? no power? no problem. introducing storm-ready wifi. now you can stay reliably connected through power outages with unlimited cellular data and up to 4 hours of battery back-up to keep you online. only from xfinity. home of the xfinity 10g network. learn more today. my sp. contra costa college saw potential in me that i didn't know i had. focus. determination. drive. contra costa college helped me blaze the trail. now i'm a comet, and there's no stopping me. come on, this is your shot. take it. join the team at contra costa college. start today at contracosta.edu