tell us more about evan gershkovich? that washington. tell us more about evan gershkovich?— gershkovich? that is the official word from _ gershkovich? that is the official word from his _ gershkovich? that is the official word from his employer, - gershkovich? that is the officiali word from his employer, hugely important today. everyjournalist important today. every journalist will important today. everyjournalist will in that newsroom will have wanted to see this, every editor who has ever worked on that newspaper will have wanted to see this. anyone working on the wall streetjournal would have been hoping for this day without getting their expectations too high because it isjust so complex, but their real, putting it out there now that he is a free man. real cause for celebration, notjust for the wall streetjournal, for us journalism in general. we heard from the committee to protect journalists, those sorts of organisations have been working very hard to secure his release, keeping up hard to secure his release, keeping up the pressure on diplomats and the biden adminis

but if he has managed to get evan gershkovich home and paul— managed to get evan gershkovich home and to get, certainly to the harris campaign.— to the harris campaign. 0k, thank ou. just to the harris campaign. 0k, thank you- just a — to the harris campaign. 0k, thank you- just a our— to the harris campaign. 0k, thank you. just a our viewers, _ to the harris campaign. 0k, thank you. just a our viewers, we - to the harris campaign. 0k, thank you. just a our viewers, we are . you. just a our viewers, we are seeing a runway in ankara where we are expecting to see one of the biggest prisoner exchanges between russia and the western history happening right now, involving 2a people, america, russia, germany and three other european countries involved. we will continue to bring you updates and all the details here on bbc news, so do stay with us. quite a mixed weather picture to take you through this afternoon. there will be large areas of the uk there will be large areas of the uk that stay dry. there's quite a bit of cloud around, but some bright or sunny spells expected to come through t

evan gershkovich, doing reporting and he was sentenced to 16 years in jail. there's a russian-american journalist, i do not know who was involved in this trade, who was also secretly convicted her name is alsu kemroshava, she was visiting her ailing mother, and she was arrested and convicted of spreading false information about the russian military or russian state. we don't know who's in this exchange, but it's extraordinary for them to come home. >> i'll let you take a drink of water while we have a chance to think about this because i can only imagine what it's also like, not just for them individually but their family members. i spoke with paul whelan's brother. i remember when brittney griner was released in 2022, and he talked about the anguish he felt for his brother and his mental strength. the fact that his brother was singing the american national anthem every morning to feel connected to this country, and hanging on the moments of phone calls, and interactions he had with family members to help get him through this time, facing years more in prison

he knew that america wanted evan gershkovich.and others and he had something to trade. i think this is pragmatic. i think it is a dealfor vladimir putin. remember this is a man who believes he is at war with the west and, as far as he is concerned, the russian dissidents in prison are enemies of russia. in a way this is a kind of wartime exchange for him. this is not an act of political thawing, it is not an act, a conservatory act, or an act of mercy. it is made in conditions of mercy. it is made in conditions of war between two countries, a political war if not a fighting war. for the families of these prisoners it has been an agonising time and so many of them have campaigned really hard to try and see this day and make sure it happened. if we could just talk about one of these prisoners for a moment and you have mentioned him already, vladimir kara—mirza. i know you have had correspondence and interviewed his wife before. tell us what she has been so the family has been through. i don't know where there is confirmation that h

first, americans, paul whelan and evan gershkovich are part of this. what is being described as a large scale prisoner exchange and release i've coming from russia germany involved. we believe germany, russia, united states, and possibly more countries involved, saw kayla tausche at the white house standing by for us on your screen there. let's get over to kayla. >> he listened a huge moment for the country and for the white house. >> and this administration. what are you hearing from there well kate you were just mentioning that december 22 exchange of brittney griner for the soviet arms dealer known as the merchant of death. >> it was an immediate aftermath of that exchange that the biden administration came under immense scrutiny from the family of paul whelan, who in at least one iteration of the proposal had been included by the united states. they had sought his release alongside grant griner's. but as we know, he was not included in that president biden took multiple meetings with the whelan the family in many cases, at their request and then th

we had the family of evan gershkovich played a l evan gershkovich played a pivotal role, particularlyhen it came to the negotiations into this complex deal. what more openly heard from the families and are they expected to be there as well as the plane touches down? indefatigable is a word that can be used about evan gershkovich�*s mother, simply refusing to let his name drop out of the headlines, making sure every single time there was a high level meeting that evan's name was mentioned. we can see the motorcade of president riding arriving now. —— president biden. the most high—profile us prisoners in modern times, and they are almost back in modern times. hopefully we can bring pictures of the motorcade. there they. we will just of the motorcade. there they. we willjust sit on those pictures for a bit. another question, and we touched on it earlier, but this was incredibly complex a deal to get to where we are today? it really is. not only did it involved a number of agencies involved a number of agencies in the us but it involved seven different nations around the world, in total

evan gershkovich there making a phone call while the cameras points at him.d as a feet of diplomacy. president biden and vice—president kamala harris. thank you for watching our continuing coverage. this is bbc news. live from london, this is bbc news. back home — three americans and a kremlin critic who were being held in russia arrive on us soil as part of the biggest prisoner swap deal since the cold war. this is the scene at andrews air force base where president biden has come to greet them. the body of the hamas political leader ismail haniyeh, who was assassinated in iran on wednesday, is now in qatar where he'll be buried later. more questions for the bbc over its handling of the huw edwards scandal. the culture secretary asks the corporation to see it can recoup any of his pay.

with the families of paul whelan for multiple years the family of evan gershkovich was guest at the white house correspondents dinner in april 2023, shortly after evan was detained in russia and president biden spoke to them directly saying that journalism some was not a crime and that he was going to do everything in his power to bring them home. certainly behind the scenes, there have been furious negotiations for years at this point, as administration officials tried to assemble a deal that they believed would be attractive to russia to accept that had not happened until very recently. and that is why we're seeing this situation happening on this timing specifically, of course, the administration did secure the release of wnba player brittney griner back in december 2022, in exchange for a soviet arms dealer known as the merchant of death. and at the time, the family of paul whelan a marine who himself with a software executive who was detained in russia even preceding the biden administration, his family was very critical of the fact that president biden greed to a deal that woul

specifically, paul whelan, evan gershkovich, a feat of diplomacy.van gershkovich, of course, alsu kurmasheva. she was imprisoned overfailure course, alsu kurmasheva. she was imprisoned over failure to course, alsu kurmasheva. she was imprisoned overfailure to register as a foreign agent will stop and vladimir kara—murza, who is in prison on treason charges. so taking all those together, we know there will be a real sense of relief obviously for the families that will be echoed by president biden, but he will be adding that sort of sense of rejoicing when he speaks to them in the white house, when he addressed the white house, when he addressed the nation. i think this is hugely significant in terms of politics. there were 16 people secured by the united states in exchange for eight in the other direction, so purely on the numbers it looks good for the biden administration to have carried that off. but also the significance of those four names i have just mentioned. long—standing celebs, particularly evan gershkovich, as a young journalist working fo

one of the things that we watched, however, in the last few weeks recently was evan gershkovich trialrussia concluded quite quickly and that was significant. the reason being of, as i said, he was charged with espionage and typically for trials involving charges of espionage in the russian system, it can go on for months potentially leading up to a year. but because his trial came to fruition quite quickly, us officials were somewhat hopeful that that was a signal that russia was moving towards some sort of an agreement on a prisoner swap because they have always said that there needs to be a conviction before they can move to an actual agreement. on a deal. so those are some of the tea leaves that we had been reading. but as we've watched this all come together, we'll have to watch and see what the ups and downs of the last eight to ten months really looks like. >> i mean, really incredible. kylie. kylie talking about that that trial for evan gershkovich, he was sentenced to 16 years in a maximum security penal colony. plenty just weeks ago. i mean, it is really stunning to see where

three us citizens imprisoned in russia, including wall streetjournal reporter evan gershkovich, are expected to be released under a prisoner exchange deal in the coming hours. a russian government plane landed in the turkish capital ankara shortly after turkey said it was coordinating an extensive prisoner swap. here are live pictures from the airport. the funeral of the political leader of hamas, ismail haniyeh, is held in tehran — benjamin netanyahu says israel delivered �*crushing blows�* to its enemies. iran vows revenge. the suspect in the southport stabbings named in court as restrictions lifted. hello, i'm annita mcveigh and welcome to verified live, three hours of checking out the news and the facts behind the stories. the biggest prisoner exchange since the end of the cold war is expected to take place in the coming hours between russia and the west when as many as 2a prisoners could be freed. the biden administration says it has agreed to an exchange to secure the release of three american citizens imprisoned in russia, including wall streetjournal reporter evan gershkovich, marine

reporter evan gershkovich and former us marine paul whelan.d spent more than five years in a russian prison. but this was the start of their journey to freedom. along with other prisoners to be swapped, they were flown to ankara airport in turkey and the stage was set for the largest prisoner swap since the cold war. those moscow had released went one way. the russians they'd been exchanged for boarded their plane home. the swap involved 26 people being held in seven different countries. as well as evan gershkovich and paul whelan, moscow freed us russian journalist alsu kurmasheva. also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin. and an anti—war artist, sasha skochilenko. swapped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich�*s boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal

we are really relieved _ about evan gershkovich? relieved to _ about evan gershkovich? we are really relieved to hear— about evan gershkovich? we are really relieved to hear this - about evan gershkovich? we are really relieved to hear this news| really relieved to hear this news and looking forward to welcoming evan back to american soil after the 16 long months that he spent in a russian prison accused of spying, when in fact he was arrested for doing hisjob as when in fact he was arrested for doing his job as a journalist. and i doing his 'ob as a “ournalist. and i wonder, doing his job as a “ournalist. and i wonder, before _ doing his job as a journalist. and i wonder, before we _ doing his job as a journalist. and i wonder, before we talk _ doing his job as a journalist. and i wonder, before we talk a - doing his job as a journalist. and i wonder, before we talk a bit - doing hisjob as a journalist. and i wonder, before we talk a bit more about evan and the other people you are looking to hear news about, i wonder what your tho

"wall street journal" reporter evan gershkovich reunited with his mother after 16 months, former marinehelan, imprisoned for five years and alsu kurmasheva. colleagues celebrated. >> waking up to images of evan arriving home and lifting his mom. she's been a fierce advocate for her son. it is hard to put into words. it is the best feeling. >> on the ramp, president biden and vice president kamala harris. >> president biden: my job is to make sure we get them back. i don't buy this idea, you let these people rot in jail because other people are captured. send notifications to other countries not to go to, what to do and not to do and they got to pay attention. >> 5000 miles away in moscow, putin welcomed home spies and convicts, including an assassin freed from a german jail. a colonel serving life sentence in germany convicted for murder of a fighter in berlin. he committed the murder on behalf of russia. putin hailed returning prisoners as heroes. your homeland has not forgotten for you, you will be nominated for state awards. evan had to write putin and ask for clemency and ended the

evan gershkovich and paul whelan are coming home, along with two others.in american custody, along with another american citizen and one american green card holder in a

reporter evan gershkovich and former us marine paul whelan.more than five years in a russian prison. but this was the start of their journey to freedom. along with other prisoners to be swapped, they were flown to ankara airport in turkey and the stage was set for the largest prisoner swap since the cold war. those moscow had released went one way. the russians they'd been exchanged for boarded their plane home. the swap involved 26 people being held in seven different countries. as well as evan gershkovich and paul whelan, moscow freed us russian journalist alsu kurmasheva. also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin. and an anti—war artist, sasha skochilenko. swapped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich�*s boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal, an ass

the front page declaring evan gershkovich is free. his family thing we can't wait to give him the biggest hug. he was detained on assignment in march 2023. last month he was sentenced to 16 years in a penal colony for espionage. the u.s. government called it a sham. president biden celebrating at the white house, surrounded by family members. >> now the brutal ordeal is over and they are free. >> they include paul whelan, the veteran detained in 2018. tonight his family thanking president biden while accusing the kremlin of taking years off his life. also, alsu kurmasheva, a russian citizen that was visiting her mother in may of last year when she was detained on a foreign agent charge and vladimir kara-murza, a prominent dissident who holds a u.s. green card. a complex prisoner swap, nothing like it has seen since the cold war. involving two dozen individuals and the handover in turkey with seven separate aircraft and eight russians that putin wanted back. greeting them with flowers. the group, including convicted spies and their chi

front page declaring evan gershkovich is free. his family says we can't wait to give him the biggest hug. he was detained on assignment in march of 2023. then, last month, he was hurriedly sentenced to 16 years in a russian penal colony for espionage. the u.s. government is calling that a sham. >> it is an incredible relief. >> reporter: president biden celebrating at the white house today, surrounded by family members of those released. >> now the brutal ordeal is over and they are free. >> reporter: they include paul whelan, the marine veteran who was detained in 2018. tonight, his family thinking president biden while accusing the kremlin of taking years off his life. also, alsu kurmasheva, a russian dual citizen who was visiting her mother in may of last year when she was detained on a foreign agent charge . and vladimir karen moussa, hold the u.s. green card. a complex prisoner swap, nothing like since the cold war. two dozen individuals, the handover in turkey with seven separate aircraft and eight russians putin wanted back

you go back to evan gershkovich's trial which was not that long ago. he was charged with espionage and they didn't put up not a single piece of evidence that had to do with espionage and yet he was convicted so clearly it's a rigged system. what are your thoughts on that? >> yes, it is a rigged system. we all know that. and yes there are risks working there and there are of course bigger risks for russians. who oppose the regime. that is a fact. but still, you want to get these people out, you have to give something in return. i have to say, there is no evidence so far at all that sanctions have had any effect in changing russian behaviour. other sanctions against the country as a whole or against individuals. >> president biden is now in the main terminal at the entrance and as we said at the top of the show, what will happen here as soon as the plane lands and we so far don't have any indication. we know that it crossed into u.s. territory so it should be landing very shortly. we are told that the president and vice president will actually when the p

they are bringing "wall street journal" relater evan gershkovich and paul whelan home.e israeli defense forces confirming they did, in fact, take out the leader of hamas. we know that the leader was taken down, the hamas leader was taken down in iran yesterday with. but we did not have the confirmation that it was israel. now on the follow-on to that, the ayatollah khamenei is reportedly ordering a direct retaliatory attack on israel. markets this morning are are rallying after the federal reserve left interest rates steady and, of course, said that there is a chance for a rate cut in september. jay powell saying that he could see a scenario of zero rate cuts or several rate cuts depending on where inflation is. we're watching the july jobs report out tomorrow we are expecting job growth for the month of july, and look at this market going into it. we're also focused on amazon and apple reporting earnings after the close tonight. let's get some final thoughts from this esteemed panel. mark themmer. >> all investor eyes more than likely are going to be on apple and amazo

evan gershkovich father and mother? sister and brother-in-law, and the husband of alsu kurmasheva, as well. president biden, vice president harris, walking side-by-side in a critical moment can we go back to excuse oh, they're walking right now with evan gershkovich, his mother were hearing i think the voice of paul whelan, if i'm not mistaken biden is approaching towards the press right now, while we hear more from the president in it tastes on this extraordinary moment even briefly trotting to access the press relief for the family. >> did you think that this moment would come, sir? >> yes. >> what made you feel so confident relation move ahead? that was what american, sir. >> what did you have to say to the three americans and their family members? welcome home and beyond that you said, sir, that family is everything earlier today. what has it meant to be with the family all day today as they are now finally reunited with their loved what you appreciate it. >> look anyone who's lost family worried about whether famil

mentioning evan gershkovich's mother. if anyone hasn't read the wall street journal's tiktok of how everything unfold up for them behind the scenes, she is the mvp of this. she's the definition of a mama bear given everything that she did. you can see at right there. she is overjoyed. she worked tirelessly, the links she went to. she became a reporter and had connections. the story is incredible. everything she did. you can see how belated all the families are here. also, the president. it is striking to see the president is taking this moment in. he's in a very good mood. he is taking questions and he lingered and hung around to try to absorb this. all the work he and his administration is put into this, and he tried to put it in the context of two things. one, family. how important family is and that's the driver of everybody but he also said it's the essence of who america is as a country. that you have relationships and you have moments like this and you get things done and come together. you can tell he is feeling ve

evan gershkovich, _ released? definitely. evan gershkovich, the - released? definitely. evan. ist, i heard gershkovich, thejournalist, i heard from our white house team that he even made a request while he was still in russia to vladimir putin to see if the president wanted to do a sit down interview with him. so he has not lost that sense of journalistic mission and i am sure he will be speaking about his experience, although it might take some time. there is a lot of adjustment coming back after such a long ordeal. taste adjustment coming back after such a lona ordeal. ~ ., ., adjustment coming back after such a long ordeal-— long ordeal. we will have to leave it there, thank _ long ordeal. we will have to leave it there, thank you _ long ordeal. we will have to leave it there, thank you very _ long ordeal. we will have to leave it there, thank you very much - it there, thank you very much indeed. . ~ it there, thank you very much indeed. ., ,, , ., it there, thank you very much indeed._ you - it there, thank you very much indeed._ you can l it there, thank you very much . in

because evan gershkovich went on trialfor espionage at because evan gershkovich went on trial for espionages adjourned until mid august. then suddenly the second hearing was brought forward. we seem to have lost the connection to steve rosenberg. frank gardner is still with me. we arejust to steve rosenberg. frank gardner is still with me. we are just starting to get more details about what has happened in the deal that has been struck. ., ., ,., , happened in the deal that has been struck. ., ., , struck. there are no reports could be as many _ struck. there are no reports could be as many 24 _ struck. there are no reports could be as many 24 people _ struck. there are no reports could be as many 24 people who - struck. there are no reports could be as many 24 people who are - be as many 24 people who are involved in this exchange involving six countries. russia, the us, uk, germany, belarus and slovenia. extraordinary if this happens. it would make it even bigger than the exchange of 14 people in 2010. this would be the biggest change of prisoners since the end of the cold war by far. it

that is evan gershkovich in the middle. you see alsu kurmasheva, and then paul whelan on the right holding an american flag pretty remarkable to see that photo i want to talk more about all of this now with a ranking member of the house intelligence committee congressman jim himes of connecticut. your reaction to this, sir? >> well, dana, you know, it's it's funny. the reaction is always the same and it's maybe particularly personal for me because it was my constituent morad tahbaz who was freed in a similar hostage deal months ago. and so it's obviously elation. i mean, if you have spoken to the families of the people who've had to go through this. you know, what it's just a euphoric moment it is. but of course that euphoria is always tempered by the knowledge of the kinds of criminals that we trade innocent people for and so i always think it's a moment of real celebration, live and by that fact that these deals by iran are inherently inherently anxiety producing. >> you are part of the so-called gang of eight when it com

and to that end, on their flight home, paul whelan, evan gershkovich gershkovich. and all kurmasheva were all job point on that airplane by multiple medics, a psychologist and of course, us government officials from the nsc to the state department. we are told and once they do land at joint base andrews, they will spend some time with their families, but then all three of them will get on a flight to san antonio. that is where they will head to brooke army medical center to get the medical well evaluation and the care that they need. that, of course, will just be the first step in there readjustment to life back in the united states all right. >> mj lee. thank you so much. and we just wish then the past and one very happy for their families, but i want to get more on this historic prisoner swap and how it was reached. we're joined now by cnn, chief national security correspondent alex marquardt. this is truly extraordinary the way this deal came together involving 24 prisoners, seven countries, and much of this was driven by us intelligence it's alex, how did it al

>> when you go on evan gershkovich's profile, you normally have a journalist description of the greatave done. you certainly have that with evan. the next and his evan was a "wall street journal" reporter detained on march 292023 while doing his job as a journalist. >> for american leadership, americans should be able to do their jobs without having to adjust their lives especially when their job is to report on these kinds of regimes. is the only way we can learn about it. it's not about adjusting to resumed continual weakness of american leadership and demanding that we have leadership that allows someone to do his job without having this happen to him and his family. >> there will be other journalists who are activated. they know better than anyone that where they are going, and american leadership and special forces will not necessarily be able to protect them. that is what makes what they do that much more important and sacred. that is why it is codified in the first amendment. >> the boyfriend, the russian ballerina currently held captive in russia. he says please, everyone, kee

evan gershkovich father and mother? sister and brother-in-law, and the husband of alsu kurmasheva, as well. president biden, vice president harris, walking side-by-side in a critical moment can we go back to excuse oh, they're walking right now with evan gershkovich, his mother were hearing i think the voice of paul whelan, if i'm not mistaken biden is approaching towards the press right now, while we hear more from the president in it tastes on this extraordinary moment even briefly trotting to access the press relief for the family. >> did you think that this moment would come, sir? >> yes. >> what made you feel so confident relation move ahead? that was what

evan gershkovich and former marine paul whelan and jou journalist alsu kurmasheva are back on americanimage, hugging his mother for the first time after spend ing 500 days i a prison cell in russia. [cheering] [applause] >> steve: that last guy, paul whelan. after landing in maryland, they took another flight overnight to texas. san antonio, texas for evaluation at brook army medical center. >> brian: sam tobin is in sam houston, texas. good morning, sam. >> three of the returnees from this historic swap are in the facility behind me, inside of fort sam houston, the outskirts of san antonio. paul whelan, evan gershkovich and alsu kurmasheva are all here and were greeted by the president and vice president and flown to kelly air force base and were transferred to the medical center and inside of fort sam houston, they began reintegration. while at andrews, whelan spoke about the wedding he attended and when authorities picked him up five years ago. >> the fsb grabbed me and said i'm a spy, general in the army and secret agent for fbi. they would not let it go. this is how putin runs his

among them, evan gershkovich arrested in march of 2023 and just sentenced last month to 16 years in a penal colony on espionage charges. also freed former marine, paul whelan he's been jailed since 2018 on what the u.s. says is baseless charges. and alsu kurmasheva, accused of spreading false information about the russian army, and russian activist, vladimir kara-murza. and we got this video from russian state media, claim to go show the freed prisoners in transit right now, and this photo from the white house of them on the plane showing the sheer relief just painted on their faces there. what happens next? we have the latest on where all four are right now in their journey home. plus we have reporting on the effort it took from several nations to get this deal off the ground, and what vladimir putin just got in return. let's get started. joining us now, nbc news international correspondent josh lederman, nbc news national security correspondent, courtney kube, and nbc news white house correspondent monica alba. bring us up to speed, what are we learning this hour? >> at this hour, a

the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks ing, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. for more, i'm joined by our eastern europe correspondent — sarah rainsford. she has been explaining what will happen to the released prisoners. there's been a lot of focus on the american prisoners who were released, the big names that were mentioned by well in his report, but as part of this massive, unprecedented deal, we have seen some really prominent russian political prisoners being released. there is a veteran human rights campaigner, defender, activist. he was one of the co—founders of the extremely well known and respected group, memorial, which is a human rights grou

reporter evan gershkovich and former us marine paul whelan.prison. but this was the start of their journey to freedom. along with other prisoners to be swapped, they were flown to ankara airport in turkey and the stage was set for the largest prisoner swap since the cold war. those moscow had released went one way. the russians they'd been exchanged for boarded their plane home. the swap involved 26 people being held in seven different countries. as well as evan gershkovich and paul whelan, moscow freed us russian journalist alsu kurmasheva. also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin. and an anti—war artist, sasha skochilenko. swapped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich's boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal, an assassin, but, you know, we wanted our

marine who is serving a 16 year sentence in the same with evan gershkovich, so to have them home is wonderfulrviewed their family members and evan's parents, i'm sure they are so relieved, what can we expect today? probably a press conference, from who? the president? >> one would think that the president would want to brief on this, it's important news and to inform everyone of what the agreement actually was. and hopefully we will hear from the state department as a member of the foreign affairs committee and obviously we will inquire immediately to get information details, and the moment it is safe for a briefing, they should do so. >> ainsley: i wonder if it will be biden or kamala harris? >> i know she is going to houston for sheila jackson's funeral, but look at, joe biden is the president of the united states, this would seem like something that he should be briefing the nation on. >> steve: 13 minutes before the top of the hour, we will bring in rebecca grant, international relations expert, rebecca, this could be -- we know about evan and paul, but this could be as many as 30 or 40 r

tell us more about evan gershkovich? that washington. tell us more about evan gershkovich? that is the official word from his _ gershkovich? that is the official word from his employer, - gershkovich? that is the officiali word from his employer, hugely important today. everyjournalist important today. every journalist will important today. everyjournalist will in that newsroom will have wanted to see this, every editor who has ever worked on that newspaper will have wanted to see this. anyone working on the wall streetjournal would have been hoping for this day without getting their expectations too high because it isjust so complex, but their real, putting it out there now that he is a free man. real cause for celebration, notjust for the wall streetjournal, for us journalism in general. we heard from the committee to protect journalists, those sorts of organisations have been working very hard to secure his release, keeping up hard to secure his release, keeping up the pressure on diplomats and the biden administration and whoever might have some clout in terms of being

among those released, evan gershkovich, the "wall street journal" reporter. the paper's newsroom today filled with emotion, its front page declaring "evan gershkovich is free. he was detained on as" his family saying, "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug." he was detained on assignment in march of 2023, then last month he was hurriedly sentenced to 16 years in a russian penal colony for espionage. the u.s. government calling that a sham. >> this is an incredible relief. >> reporter: president biden celebrating at the white house today, surrounded by family members of those released. >> now their brutal ordeal is over, and they're free. >> reporter: they include paul whelan, the marine veteran who was detained in moscow in 2018. tonight his family thanking president biden while accusing the kremlin of taking years off his life. also alsu kurmasheva, a russian dual citizen who was visiting her mother in may of last year when she was detained on a foreign agent charge, and vladimir kara-murza, a prominent russian dissident who holds a u.s. green card. a co

we understand just moments ago confirming that evan gershkovich and paul whelan have been exchanged,ense on that. so in terms of the reporting right now, i know you have been speaking to the families so what does such a moment mean for them? obviously, this doesn't happen where there on a tarmac, right? this this exchange happens. the families are waiting, they get word. what are you learning? >> the family has gathered at a hotel here in washington, dc as news of this deal coming together, was relayed to them away. eating, visit with the president. they're going to be meeting with the president today as well as this deal is finalized, i will say an enormous amount of relief. i'm told by someone who's with the families. right now and enormous amount of joy and elation anticipation but also nervousness right up to the final moment because these are families who have been victim to really the unjust attention of their loved ones for months in some cases years. but also repeated disappointments, right? when they thought that there might be a deal that was close and then they were disapp

american journalists, evan gershkovich and u.s. marine corporate security executive paul whelan are included in the deal. we are getting new video right now showing them boarding their plane for the trip to the u.s. of president biden calls all of this an incredible relief saying the presenters brutal ordeal is over. but some of the critics question the release of the specific russian criminals in the prisoner exchange and they question the timing. ahead of the u.s. election that's now changed. senior white house correspondent has the latest details live from the north lawn. a good evening. >> this exchange is the result of months of negotiations between the u.s., five nato allies, russia which looked bleak and uncertain at many points including when russia and opposition leader died in prison. in the release was supposed to include him too. but tonight a sigh of relief. >> good afternoon. this is a very good afternoon. >> flanked by their family members, president biden announcing >> evan gershkovich, paul whalen, evan gershkovich

it is also before the families of those returns, evan gershkovich's family, paulwhelan returns, evan t biden was also asked about his legacy there, he said he would be taking those questions as another time. let us have a look at some pictures of when they arrived at andrews air force base. this was the moment that president biden first met paul whelan. there were hugs from both president biden and kamala harris. former us marine there. the flight had come via turkey. it was quite a feat for many countries that were involved in this prisoner swap. russia claiming the victory as well. let's speak to professor steve fish, who teaches political science at the university of california, berkeley. professor, thanks so much for joining us. we saw on the tarmac there president biden and vice—president kamala harris, but russia claiming a victory as well, who wins in this? i victory as well, who wins in this? ~ victory as well, who wins in this? ,, ,., victory as well, who wins in this? ,, , , this? i think both sides win. it's this? i think both sides win. it's hard _ this? i think both sides

for family and friends of evan gershkovich, paul whelan and dissidents like kuara-murza. kremlin, it got what it's wanted, they got their agents back. for moscow, the take away from all of this is that hostage diplomacy wks. that means we are likely to see more of it. more prisoners being used as bargaining chips. and more prison exchanges like this one may be needed to bring them home. >> with us tonight, the russian political activist and political strategist who managed the election campaign of alexei navalny in 201 his youtube channel has more than 200,000 subscribers. we are also joined by a former u.k. ambassador to belarus and a senior fellow at the international institute of strategic studies. thank you both for being with us this evening. maybe i could start with you, ma xim because what we have learned from the national security adsor at the white house is that this deal was supposed to include alexei navalny. he was part of the negotiation, but of course was killed by the russian prison authorities. what do you make of that? >> this was discussed back in januar

the breaking news of the prisoner swap that secured the freedom of, among others, americans evan gershkovichan, the gershkovich family, just released a statement saying in part, quote we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. >> we can't wait to give him the biggest hug. and see his sweet and brave smile up close. most important now is taking care of evan and being together again, no family should have to go through this and so we share relief, enjoyed today with paul and ulcers family. now, earlier today, national security adviser jake sullivan told reporters the u.s. had been working on an earlier iteration of a deal that would have included russian dissident alexey navalny. but then he died in prison in february. cnn's clarissa ward covered navalny extensively joins us now from tel aviv clarissa, i was surprised to hear how much jake said about where things were before alexey navalny's death do we know anything more about how close this came to actually getting across the finish line? >> well, i can tell you, phil because i was in communic

and i don't believe you'll do it for anyone else well, of course, evan gershkovich is now home before anyone assumes office next january. >> he's going to be home in just a few hours and ask for whom putin is doing this for he's not doing we have for anyone but himself tonight, he's being hailed as a hero in russia, state television fawning over images of the russian president greeting the former president prisoners red carpet. there were people with flowers putin would take big chunks of those flowers and then hand them off. we have a team of reporters standing by as this breaking story develops. and i want to begin with you, mj lee, because i know you're outfront live at joint base andrews where the next stage of this historic day will happen within these next hours where we're all waiting for that plan to land tonight, where you are i can imagine how emotional that will be even for you standing there to watch this, it is for any american. i know you're getting some new information. mj about who's actually on this private plane along with but the prisoners yeah. >> erin, in just a f

it's a throw for everyone here to have evan gershkovich rightfully on his way home.ns were used to, unfortunately, seeing him like this. in a glass cage in russia court appearances he would often smile and would wave. most recently seen with a shaved head. in the most recent images we got of him he was behind bars for a year in a 9 by 12 cell. on false charges of espionage. this is paul whelan on his way home after his wrongful detainment for espionage as well. he was 4 years into a 16 year sentence in the hard work labor camp. you can see in this next image, evan on the left seated with a big smile on his face. hall on the right. below him is a journalist. at this hour they are saying based on the conversations with them strong of voice and mind and strong of spirit. these are obviously very relentless and here's survivors of a very, very difficult situation in russia. today they are free and we are waiting for them to land on american soil that will happen in a couple of hours which will be a huge moment for all americans today. the assistant editor of the wall str

paul whelan and evan gershkovich are expected to be included in this prisoner sw.iden presidency is winding down. our rivals and enemies are gearing up. in the last three years, russia, china, or iran and north korea have come together to challenge american power. they are brutal. they are aggressive. and they are united against i. -- us. russia invades ukraine for no good reason other than putin's dreams of empire. ukraine ruined. china rushes hong kong. it used to be a bastion of freedom. xi jinping threatens the same to taiwan. chinese bombers joined russian fighter jets last month if flying in formation directly at alaska. iran funds hamas which massacred israelis last october. it funds hezbollah which fires thousands of rockets into israel. it funds the houthis which tie up the mideast sea lanes and kill american soldiers. north korea? they supply russia with the ammunition it needs to destroy ukraine. america's facing a concerted global challenge. are we prepared in that's more than a military question. it's a question about a willingness to confront our brut

he called paul welland and evan gershkovich and alsu kurmasheva as soon as the as the plans were wheels up with their families at their side celebrating the end to the horrible ordeal. after they were safely in u.s. custody the plane was wheels up in the president touted his own relationships with foreign leaders that made this exchange happen. >> the deal that made this possible was a feat of does policies and friendship. friendship. multiple countries helped get this done. they joined a difficult complex negotiation and at my request. i personally thank them all again and i thank them personally and thank them again. >> reporter: in germany to agree to release what was a major hurdle. we were told it only happened because the present asked the german chancellor and the chancellor said to bite and will do for you. in trying to give the president some credit the national security advisor took a swap -- swipe at the present. dark nominee. >> it sounded like the all most took a swipe at the president and said if joe biden was in the oval office i don't think this would've happen. is at a

evan gershkovich, what a fine person. actually worked in a very bipartisan way with mitch mcconnell to try to put pressure on the russians to get him out. but the administration did a great job. whelan, he was just a marine, he went to a wedding and they just arrested him. and they did a very good job. because the number of people op our side who got out was far exceeded the number of theirs and a lot of them were just political dissidents. some were friends of navalny and others. this says to the other americans who are imprisoned in authoritarian countries, we will never forget you. we will keep working until we get you out too. >> when you talk bipartisanship, it gives all of us hope but i will talk about someone who is not into bipartisanship. and that is donald trump. he is making this race about gender, he is making it about identity. and just yesterday, he referred to you, the highest ranking jewish american member of our government. >> ever. >> as a proud member of hamas. i want to get your reaction. but also, wha

evan gershkovich's detention in march adding more urgency.s year, russian opposition leader navalny was included in the deal. his death setting back negotiations. the final push came just one hour before joe biden announced that he was leaving the presidential race on july 21st, when he secured the final approval from slovenia to provide russians for the exchange. national security advisor jake sullivan on "today." >> we had to put pieces into place, one by one. we had a good sense this deal would happen. we couldn't be sure until the exchange actually occurred on the tarmac in turkey yesterday. >> before being released from russia, gershkovich was ordered to write vladimir putin asking for clemency. ever the reporter, evan added a note, asking putin for an interview. the kremlin this morning saying, if they receive an official request, they will consider it. we begin with correspondent gabe gutierrez. yesterday, it was an emotional jake sullivan. he was a big player here organizing this, analyzing it and staying in close touch with the famil

the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks ree, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. our eastern europe correspondent, sarah rainsford, who's in berlin, has more. i think this is seen as a deal in which both parties get what they want. it's been an extremely complex deal to negotiate, led by the united states but engaging very directly with the regime of vladimir putin although not with him personally. it is clear that mr putin made it clear that there was one person he wanted back in return for any american prisoners being returned to the united states and that was the convicted assassin who had killed here on the streets of berlin in 2019, an fsb hit

among those released the wall streetjournal reporter evan gershkovich. speaking from the white house alongside the family members of the released americans, president biden thanked us allies involved in mediating the exchange. moments ago, the families and i were able to speak to them on the telephone from the oval office. they are out of russia, earlier today they were flown to turkey. and soon they'll be wheels up on their way home to see their families. in the uk, the prime minister has announced new measures the bbc�*s director general reveals he knew in november that huw edwards had been arrested for possession of the most serious category of indecent images of children. also coming up on the world today: venice limits the size of tourist parties to 25 people, in the latest attempt to reduce the impact of crowds on the lagoon. welcome to the world today, an hour of international news from the bbc. it is one of the biggest prisoner exchanges between east and west in recent history. 26 people have been swapped between russia and the united states and

as for evan gershkovich, he personally extended putin one final gesture before his release, according to the wall street journal, at the end of the application you shouldn't for clemency. he had to submit. he added a handwritten request for putin for an interview. always a working journalist joining us now with more on what went into this remarkable deal will joined by cnn's alex marquardt and alex, what a complicated web of diplomacy that brought this over the finish line. all the countries involved how exactly the this deal come together. >> so many parties involved, so many countries involved, you mentioned jake sullivan, of course he the white house, the president intimately involved with this process roger carstens, the hostages goes here at the state department, would have laid out the basic framework, the landscape of the deal. but i'm told that the middlemen, essentially the people doing the shuttle negotiating that was the the cia director and bill burns. and if we look back on this timeline, about 18 months after brittney griner was exchanged for the merchant of death, death