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CNN correspondent becomes emotional when Hamas savagery hits close to home: ‘That’s the same age as my parents’

December 23, 2023 | | Print Article

Hamas brutality hit home for a CNN reporter during emotional coverage confirming hostages killed that ran afoul of the corporate media narrative.

(Video: CNN)

Friday, ahead of a United Nations Security Council resolution promoting aid to the Gaza Strip, CNN senior international correspondent Will Ripley was given cause to stray from the media’s frequent maligning of Israel as Hamas’ terrorist tactics tallied another death to the jihadists total.

“The confirmation just came in minutes ago,” began Ripley to “CNN This Morning” co-host Poppy Harlow from Tel Aviv, Israel. “Gadi Haggai, just 73 years old, who was kidnapped on the morning of October 7th along with his wife, Judi, while they were walking in the vineyards and fields near their Kibbutz, Nir Oz. They were taken. They were shot.”

Explaining that friends had been contacted before their abduction, the correspondent went on to detail, “And while we don’t know the exact circumstances of Gadi’s death, we have been hearing from hostages, newly released who talk about just total information blackout, being separated from their loved ones, sometimes being held down in underground tunnels, hearing every single airstrike, feeling like maybe they were forgotten about.”

As his voice wavered, Ripley paused to compose himself before he continued with a personal reflection, “73 years old, that’s the same age as my parents.  I can’t imagine what their families have been going through and feeling, Poppy. But this is the situation for families here in Israel, families throughout this whole conflict who’ve been losing loved ones every single day.”

From there, the reporter made clear Hamas’ responsibility, not only for the attack on Oct. 7 but for their continued abuses of civilians to advance their objectives in the war.

“Israel has been trying and has made an initial offer to Hamas for a week-long pause in fighting in exchange for people like Gadi,” he explained, referencing others in need of urgent care being held as bargaining chips for the terrorists seeking the release of imprisoned allies. “Hamas rejected that offer, not in any rush to negotiate too quickly, hoping they can get more concessions out of Israel, including the exchange of their own high-level potential militants.”

Friday, the United Nations Security Council voted 13-0, with the United States and Russia abstaining, on a “resolution calling for the scaling up & monitoring of aid going into Gaza,” that did not include any call for a suspension of hostilities.

While calling “for urgent steps to immediately allow safe and unhindered humanitarian access, and also for creating the conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities,” the resolution did not define what those steps would be.

When asked by Harlow about the vote, Ripley explained, “what this means is that finally the United States, which has delayed these votes repeatedly as they pore over the language of this — the U.S. has vetoed past U.N. resolutions for calling for a ceasefire, calling for a procedure to get desperately needed humanitarian aid into Gaza, partially because they’re concerned that there wasn’t strong enough language condemning Hamas for starting this, for coming into Israel, unprovoked, and murdering hundreds of people on October the 7th and kidnapping hundreds of others.”

Kevin Haggerty
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