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Trump Administration's Purge Of Federal Workforce Escalates; Multiple Prosecutors Quit Over Trump's Order To Drop Case Against NYC Mayor; Elon Musk Given Broad Authorities Over Hiring, Firing Of Fed Workers; Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks To Start Soon In Saudi Arabia; Flu Season In The US Is The Most Intense It's Been In At Least 15 Years; Hamas Releases Three More Hostages, Including An Israeli-American; Woman Drops Lawsuit Against Jay-Z And Sean Combs. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired February 15, 2025 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:55]

PAULA REID, CNN HOST: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Reid in Washington. Jessica Dean has the day off.

Now President Donald Trump and Elon Musk are testing the limits of presidential power, from the Department of Education and the Department of Homeland Security to the CDC and the IRS. Multiple government agencies are contending with mass layoffs.

CNN correspondent Rafael Romo joins us now with the latest.

Rafael, what can you tell us at this hour?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Paula, as you can imagine, there's a lot of fear and anxiety, especially given what one CDC employee, who would like to remain unidentified for obvious reasons, told me that this may only be the beginning and that the cuts may be deep and widespread. At the CDC alone, about 1300 employees may have lost their jobs, according to a CNN source. One of those departments is a unit that has investigated public health threats here in the U.S. and abroad, including COVID-19.

We've also learned that at least one member of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency visited the Internal Revenue Service offices in Washington on Thursday as part of its mission to downsize government agencies.

Trump administration officials fired more than 300 staffers Thursday night at the National Nuclear Security Administration, the agency tasked with managing the nation's nuclear stockpile, although the terminations were rescinded after the full scope of their critical mission became clear.

We have obtained several internal e-mails, Paula, from the CDC about the layoffs. Some deal with the terminations, but others target diversity, equity and inclusion programs that the Trump administration is terminating. One message it's a not-so-veiled threat against some workers. It reads in part. "We are aware of efforts by some in government to disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language. There will be no adverse consequences for timely reporting this information."

However, it says, failure to report this information within 10 days may result in adverse consequences. On Thursday, Elon Musk defended his actions by saying that, quote, "The people voted for major government reform and that's what people are going to get." Paula?

REID: Rafael Romo, thank you.

Now to the upheaval and unrest in Pam Bondi's Justice Department. We are learning federal prosecutors are now moving to drop corruption charges against New York City mayor at the direction of the Justice Department. And this comes after multiple prosecutors out of New York and Washington resigned in protest of this decision.

For more, we're joined by CNN legal analyst and former U.S. attorney Michael Moore.

Michael, thanks for being with us on this Saturday night. Amid all this legal drama to his agenda, President Trump declared today that, quote, "He who saves his country does not violate any law." What is your reaction to that?

MICHAEL MOORE, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, I'm glad to be with you. I think that's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard from somebody claiming to be the leader of the United States. I mean, this is a nation of laws, and it sets forth how we operate. And so you don't get to run amok and violate the Constitution and do those things that are, you know, antithetical in fact to the basic premises of the Department of Justice and do it under the guise that somehow you're saving the country.

You can't save the country by gutting the foundation on which it's based. And so, you know, he's full of bluster. And that's been the problem. But we're starting to see now the courts are going to have to take this by the nape of the neck and deal with it I imagine in fairly short order.

REID: But when it comes to this deal that they have regarding Adams, if you had received this memo from Emil Bove, would you have done this? Would you have been like, sure, I'll move in throughout this case?

MOORE: No, I would have not have done it. I would have resigned and I would have fired the prosecutor under my charge who tried to do it. I think that, in fact, Mr. Bove should likely find himself in front of the federal judge who is overseeing this case to explain how this comports both with federal law and the practices of the department.

[19:05:10]

And I think he's going to have a hard time doing that. There's been sort of this idea somehow that an election overrides the rule of law, or that the fact that one candidate may have promised something on the campaign trail, that because he was elected that now suddenly everything is OK and nothing else matters because he has a mandate. Well, that's just not the case. But in this instance, you've seen, you know, the mayor basically be subject to a quid pro quo deal. And that is for as long as he agrees with Trump and supports his policies on immigration, he is free from prosecution.

If, in fact, at some point he changes his mind and decides to take off his MAGA hat, he's not going to be free. And you know this is a pretty clear deal. And it's in writing. And again, I think Mr. Bove is going to have a hard time explaining that to the judge. And if I were the judge of the case, it would be Mr. Bove standing in court since he signed it to explain, you know, the department's position on it.

REID: And it's been Mr. Bove who signed a lot of these controversial memos at the Justice Department. He hadn't yet been confirmed, he's the one looking for information on January 6th prosecutors.

So when it comes to Pam Bondi, you worked at the Justice Department, you understand the role of the attorney general. What can she do at this point to try to right the ship?

MOORE: You know, what she needs to do is remember her oath. And one of the most poignant times in my service as the United States attorney was when the president took us into the White House and looked at us in the eye and said, you do not represent me. You represent the country and our laws and the people of this country. You do not represent me. I think that's somehow been lost in this administration.

And so what she needs to do is remember her oath, remember who she represents. Look at the Department of Justice and the history of the Department of Justice. And in fact, all she needs to do is go back and look at the memo that she authored in the first part of February, where she tells line prosecutors, you can't make prosecution decisions based on politics. Well, by the same token, you can't dismiss cases just because a political ally decides they're going to agree with you. And so that's the place she's in now.

REID: Yes. And some people may not know that it's really the deputy attorney general who runs the day-to-day operations, oversees the U.S. attorney's office.

MOORE: It is.

REID: Todd Blanche, president's longtime personal attorney, he has been nominated for that as expected. He will be confirmed. When it comes to running the day-to-day operations, I mean, what advice would you give Todd Blanche walking into this real disaster, civil war, DOJ?

MOORE: You know, he's going to have to shake off sort of the remnants of what remain of his representation of Trump. And he's going to have to recognize that he's in a role now that is much, much bigger than that. And that is to operate the Department of Justice. And that means that you oversee prosecutions of those prosecutors who protect civil rights, who prosecute sex traffickers, who prosecute child pornographers, who prosecute foreign spies and agents, who prosecute and have prosecuted the mafia and organized crime.

He's got a much more serious job than just trying to play to that one client that we saw during some of the trials, and so he needs to recognize that these are good people. These are career people that are in these positions. And he needs to see the department, I think, on the pedestal which it has stood. Has the department always been perfect? No. And there's sometimes been decisions when people -- that you can disagree with? Absolutely.

But the promise of the department is to be apolitical and to not simply be sort of the hammer that the executive branch gets to swing around at people who don't agree with them. And that's what we're seeing here. It's, again, this is not an issue about Eric Adams. That's -- you know, he can do what he wants to. I mean, he may have his lips plastered to the posterior of the president. I don't know, but this is a situation and the fear is it sets the precedent for a powerful department to hold over the normal Joe's head, the threat of prosecution if you don't agree with them, or this sort of this idea that, well, we're going to bring your case back up if in fact you don't do what we want to do on this policy. And that's not been the mission of the department. And it's not supported by the Constitution.

REID: Yes. It's also that kind of weaponization they say they want to go in there and root out.

MOORE: Correct.

REID: So, Michael Moore, thank you so much.

MOORE: I'm glad to be with you. It's good to see you.

REID: As Trump and Elon Musk move swiftly to remake the federal government, Musk's power and influence is growing. The president this week giving Musk new broad authorities over the hiring and firing of federal workers. He appears to be doing all of this with little to no oversight from Congress.

Joining us now is CNN media analyst and media correspondent for Axios, Sara Fischer.

Sara, how did one of the world's richest man become one of Washington's most powerful bureaucrats?

[19:10:07]

SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: It's the question of all questions, Paula. But really, it came down to when Elon Musk acquired Twitter, now called X. He positioned himself as the amplifier-in-chief. Donald Trump may have built Truth Social, but when he was on the campaign trail in 2024, he recognizes he needed a much bigger megaphone. When the general election started, Trump started buying ads on X. He started to use the platform a lot more.

His allies started to prioritize X, and so Elon Musk became a close ally because he was the person that dictated whether or not Trump could be as successful in reaching mass amounts of people in a way he couldn't on his own social media platform. Elon Musk also sort of, you know, was very close with the types of people that Donald Trump leveraged for podcasts. Think about it. The Joe Rogans of the world, the Theo Vons of the world. He resembled those types of people. And so he became somebody that

Donald Trump needed and Donald Trump trusted. And then when it came time to execute on Donald Trump's many campaign promises, because Elon Musk has long been an agitator in Washington, he trusted that Elon Musk could be the face of all of these cuts and all of this disruption. It's a very unusual role. As you mentioned, it doesn't require authority of Congress, but it also puts Elon Musk in quite a precarious position. Because he's not an elected official, because he hasn't been congressionally approved, a lot of his moves will come down to the courts.

People will put legal pressure on them, as you know, Paula, to try to determine whether or not he has the broad authority to do the things he's doing. And so right now, this feels like a big showmanship's role. He's going to come out with a big hammer and try to slap every single nail that he sees. But whether or not he'll be successful long term, we shall see.

REID: Well, let's pivot, of course, the White House this week barred the Associated Press from the Oval Office and Air Force One indefinitely over the outlet's use of the Gulf of Mexico over Trump's renamed Gulf of America. Last night, the National Press Club's president weighed in with a statement saying, quote, "The White House barring Associated Press journalists for not using government imposed language is a blatant violation of the First Amendment and a brazen attack on press freedom," end quote.

I mean, my law license is a little dusty, Sara, but this seems like pretty obvious. First Amendment 101. I mean, put this into context for us.

FISCHER: Yes. So during Donald Trump's first administration, Paula, he did a bunch of things that press freedom groups ultimately sued and took to court over. You'll recall he removed White House press credentials from CNN's Jim Acosta. Ultimately, he lost on that case. They also went to court over whether or not he could block critics on Twitter. The judges in that ruling said that Twitter could be considered a public forum. And Donald Trump also lost in that case. It actually eventually went to bed in 2021, when Donald Trump was pulled off the platform.

So you have a little bit of legal precedent here, Paula, for whether or not if AP or First Amendment group were to try to sue, arguing First Amendment violations, you have some precedent for whether or not this would be considered a violation. And I think many legal experts would say it would be.

But the challenge here, Paula, is a verdict like that. We might not get that for many years. And in the interim, Donald Trump has very clearly laid out a playbook for how he plans to handle the press. Basically, any of your editorial standards that don't align with his expectations, he and his administration will use that as grounds to remove you from the Oval, or remove you from the White House or Air Force One.

That is, I think, the playbook that we're going to see moving forward. Now, the AP has not, you know, indicated that they're going to take legal action. But if this were to persist with more news organizations, Paula, it would not shock me if you had a third party press freedom, a First Amendment group, do a lawsuit on behalf of these news organizations.

REID: This is also very costly to bring that kind of action.

Sara Fischer, thank you.

FISCHER: Thank you.

REID: And tonight we're learning new details about how the Trump administration is looking to end the war in Ukraine and the crucial player who won't be involved in talks set to take place next week.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:018:50]

REID: Tonight, the White House taking new steps to try to fulfill another one of President Trump's campaign promises, ending the war in Ukraine. Sources telling CNN top administration officials are set to travel to Saudi Arabia in the coming days for a meeting with senior Russian officials. This as President Trump's special envoy to Russia and Ukraine, General Keith Kellogg, makes clear Europe will not be part of those talks.

CNN's Betsy Klein broke this story. She joins us now from West Palm Beach, Florida, with more details.

Betsy, what more are you learning?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, moments after President Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week, he indicated that he wanted those talks to end Russia's war in Ukraine to begin, quote, "immediately." And to that end, we have learned that he is dispatching three of his top lieutenants to speak with high level Russian officials.

That includes, according to two sources familiar with the plans, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security adviser Mike Waltz and Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who will travel to Saudi Arabia one source tells us in the coming days, declining to say when specifically.

[19:20:03]

But our colleague Matthew Chance says that the Kremlin has also begun assembling its own high level contingent of staffers. And that's going to include top political, intelligence and economic officials.

Now, President Trump told reporters days ago that he could soon, depending on the status of these talks, meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin himself. And that meeting could happen in the not-too- distant future. He suggested it would also take place in Saudi Arabia, and indicated that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman could be involved in those discussions. Of course, the crown prince has been a key interlocutor between the U.S., Russia and Saudi Arabia and Ukraine.

One party that won't be at the negotiating table, according to special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, General Keith Kellogg, is the Europeans. But Kellogg did indicate that Ukraine will be at the negotiating table. Of course, when and in what capacity remains unclear at this time. Kellogg also indicated Sunday that Russia is going to have to make concessions. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEITH KELLOGG, RUSSIA-UKRAINE ENVOY: To me, there's going to have to be things like territorial concessions as well. OK? Some of it is realistic for to expect where you'd want to go to, but it's territorial -- it's some territorial. It could be the engagement of refusing to use force. Renouncement of the use of force into the future from a political side. He's not going to downsize his military forces. Hopefully get rid of -- what we're going to try to do is basically force him into actions. What you want to do is force him to actions maybe he's uncomfortable with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KLEIN: Now we have seen President Trump take steps to dramatically reshape U.S. foreign policy as it pertains to Russia and Ukraine, and also take steps toward rebuilding relations with President Putin. But certainly very critical, high stakes talks in the coming days. We'll be watching quite closely -- Paula.

REID: Betsy Klein, thank you.

And joining me now to discuss this CNN global affairs analyst, Kim Dozier.

Kim, what do you make of this move to cut out Europe from these negotiations?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, it's a surefire way to infuriate Paris, the Germans, the Brits, because they have been part of supporting Ukraine up until now. And the Germans and the French were part of the Minsk Agreement that helped bring some amount of peace, of course, it didn't last, in Eastern Ukraine before. And they've been putting a lot of their blood and treasure on the line, at least treasure in terms of -- and providing weapons to Ukraine.

So getting cut out like this just after getting bawled out by Vice President JD Vance in his Munich Security Forum speech, that's how many people took that speech, this is unwelcome news.

REID: What power do European leaders have at this point in ensuring Ukraine does not get steamrolled in these negotiations?

DOZIER: Well, that's one of the things that President Zelenskyy was trying to point out to the audience, saying, you know, Ukraine is part of Europe and we have to band together because we can't count on the U.S. for our security, possibly in the future. He was he was fairly blunt about it in his speech and in remarks afterwards that the White House had become an unstable sort of arbiter of this, that he was working with carefully. And he was urging all assembled to stand up a European army and start thinking about going it alone against Russia and arming Ukraine to be the front lines of that potential future fight.

REID: What is he doing there when he calls for the creation of an army in Europe to deter Putin? Is that realistic or is it simply a way to just get under Putin's skin?

DOZIER: Well, the majority of European countries are part of NATO and their defense expenditures are spent less on internal defense and more on being part of NATO training ranks, et cetera, to be able to respond to some sort of future threat. And that's why Donald Trump has been urging them all to spend more money on their own defenses. So, you know, this is an uncomfortable suggestion from Zelenskyy.

It's an uncomfortable amount of berating from Trump. But both sides are saying, you know, for various reasons, you've got to start thinking about spending more on your own defense because in Zelenskyy's case, he was warning Russia won't stop with Ukraine, especially if Russia is allowed to keep large parts of Ukraine.

And I have to tell you, a lot of European officials I've spoken to firmly believe that, agree with Zelenskyy and think that the Trump administration might be offering up too much, too fast, to a Moscow that's just going to take it, agree with it, and then in two or three years, break those agreements and invade somewhere in Europe or more of Ukraine again.

[19:25:17]

REID: I want to play an interesting moment from my colleague Christiane Amanpour's interview with President Zelenskyy this morning, where he revealed one of the things he actually told Trump during their phone call. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: It was reported President Trump that Putin is only doing this and agreeing to talks because he's afraid of Trump? Did you tell him that?

PRES. VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINE: Yes. I told Trump that Putin afraid of him. Yes. And he heard me. And now Putin knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: The comedic timing in that answer on full display. But what do you make of that? Is he hoping this will influence Trump's relationship with the Kremlin?

DOZIER: Look, part of this is every leader or official I've spoken to who has dealt with Trump knows that they have to flatter his ego. But Trump is also known for being mercurial, angry, vengeful, proudly so. So that what Ukrainian officials I've spoken to hope is that Trump will put a lot of trust in Putin, and then Putin will early on break one of these agreements, make Trump angry, and that will cause Trump and the White House to then fully support Ukraine as the Biden administration once did.

That's a whole lot of strategizing. But other than that, you know, it's kind of like, what can they hope for? Kyiv will not survive without U.S. support in addition to European support because the Russians can mass so many forces in terms of people and its weapons manufacturing has been boosted inside the country and by supplies from Iran, North Korea, and logistical supplies from China. And that's a lot for Europe to compete with to help Ukraine.

REID: Kim Dozier, thank you.

DOZIER: Thanks.

REID: And ahead, why urgent and vital data from the CDC has been missing for weeks, putting health officials and doctors in a dangerous position as they react to outbreaks of measles, influenza and bird flu.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:32:24]

REID: Right now, an intense flu season is gripping the nation, and chances are you or someone you know has had it.

Hospitalization rates are even topping levels, as seen at some points in the COVID 19 pandemic. At the same time, we're learning the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a critical source of analysis of the flu and other health threats has gone quiet.

CNN medical analyst, Dr. Jonathan Reiner joins us now. Dr. Reiner, our booker is tell me that you have the flu right now. So, let me start by asking you if you have the flu, why are you here talking to me right now?

DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Because I'm actually learning a lot about what we need to do better in this country from my own experience.

First of all, the flu is everywhere and if you don't know somebody who has the flu, you will. Fifty thousand people in this country were admitted to hospitals last week with the flu. There are probably about four million new infections every day.

And for the last few weeks, for the first time, more people in this country are dying of influenza than of COVID.

So, this is this is a big problem. Yet, less than 50 percent of people in this country have been vaccinated for it.

When I got sick two nights ago, I was grateful that I had been vaccinated for influenza, even though I still contracted the virus, being vaccinated reduced the severity, and the severity was really bad.

Think about shaking and baking. Having intense chills while wearing a hoodie, lying under a pile of blankets and then alternating that with fever, right, and that was just the beginning. So, I felt glad that I was vaccinated. But we've done a very poor job at reminding people to get vaccinated. And in the current leadership environment of HHS, I don't think that's going to get any better.

REID: So, on that point, we also saw, of course, this massive layoffs in the CDC including losing what one source told CNN many employees categorized as mission critical. So how will that impact the country's ability to fight this kind of outbreak?

REINER: So the CDC's main mission is to protect the health of the United States. And they do that in a variety of ways. They do research, they are a source of or they should be a source of unbiased medical information and epidemiological information to the public and to scientists around the country and around the world.

And there were also, importantly and intelligence organization. They have relationships around the world looking to understand and find outbreaks of novel pathogens before they get to the United States and shuttering parts of CDC, I think there were a thousand people fired from CDC in Atlanta this week or limiting the kind of information that is released and we've seen them black out pages online dealing with things like them black out pages online dealing with things like monkeypox vaccination, blood donation for gay people, limiting the kind of information or looking at it in a sort of political -- with a political lens is not in the interest of the public.

When there's a pathogen circulating in this country, you want to hear it straight, and you want to get it from the CDC.

[19:35:43]

REID: There are, of course, two other outbreaks we're contending with. The first is the measles outbreak in Texas. How concerned should people be and how do they protect themselves and their children from measles?

REINER: Well, this is the most preventable illness. The measles vaccine is 98 percent effective at preventing that illness.

In the decade before the measles vaccine was approved in 1963, there were about four million cases of measles every year, about 50,000 hospitalizations, 500 deaths, about a thousand cases of encephalitis, which could lead to, you know, permanent cognitive impairment or deafness. And that all went away with the vaccine.

And by 2,000, it was declared eradicated from the United States. The only cases being people who contracted it outside the United States and traveled into this country.

But what's happened is vaccination rates have dropped in this country. You need about 95 percent of the public to be vaccinated for measles, to have so-called herd immunity. Think of it this way, if almost everyone is vaccinated with an effective vaccine and someone comes into the community, there's no way for the virus to spread. But when there are a lot of people who haven't been vaccinated and the virus comes into the community, there is, you know, it becomes a high target environment for the virus and that's what's happening in West Texas.

The county in West Texas, with this outbreak now has an 18 percent exemption rate for kindergartners in terms of vaccines. The state of Texas allows parents to opt out of vaccinating their kids simply by telling them that they either have a religious or some other personal objection to it, and in that county, 18 percent of people have opted out of it and that does not give you herd immunity.

And now, we're seeing that in the last couple of days, the number of measles cases have doubled. There are 49 measles cases about 13 people have been hospitalized. All of these patients with measles are unvaccinated. Its' a completely needless illness in 2025.

REID: Dr. Jonathan Reiner, thank you for joining us and I do hope that you feel better.

REINER: Thank you, Paula.

REID: We'll be right back.

[19:42:34]

REID: To the Middle East now.

Today, Hamas released three more hostages as part of the ceasefire agreement with Israel. Israel released 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in return. Disputes this week threatened to derail the ceasefire, but Hamas agreed to go forward with the plan after what the group described as a positive talk with mediators.

And while family members of freed hostages say they are overjoyed to have their loved ones home, they know there's a long road ahead of healing.

CNN's Bianna Golodryga spoke with the mothers of three young Israeli former hostages. They shared what their daughters went through in captivity and I'll warn you, this report contains disturbing video.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST (voice over): It was a homecoming that captivated a still traumatized nation. Young female hostages finally reunited with their families after 477 grueling days.

ORLY GILBOA, MOTHER OF FORMER ISRAELI HOSTAGE DANIELLA GILBOA: Daniella, She's happy. She's at home, she's free and this is what's important.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): On the morning of October 7th, Hamas terrorists attacked the IDF military base where 22 female soldiers were stationed as spotters along the Gaza border.

Naama Levy, Liri Albag and Daniella Gilboa can be seen wounded, bound and threatened by their captors, surrounded by the murdered bodies of 15 of their friends.

GOLODRYGA (on camera): Did your daughter tell you about the specific horrors that they endured in the video that we saw?

O. GILBOA: October 7th is the most hard thing for her to speak about. She lost a lot of good friends of her, and the loss of them is very hard for her even more than the period of time of their captivity.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): Images of Naama's capture, in particular, took the world by storm. As she was dragged by her hair wearing bloody sweat pants. Somehow, her mother says she saw the video in captivity and also heard her family's pleas for release.

AYELET LEVY SHACHAR, MOTHER OF FORMER ISRAELI HOSTAGE NAAMA LEVY: She saw the video. She knew about it, and she did see myself and her father in different interviews. She heard, sometimes on the radio, her brother speaking, her grandfather speaking. So, it wasn't an everyday thing, but sometimes she was exposed to the media and it did give her lot of strength and support and helped her throughout those days.

[19:45:18]

GOLODRYGA (voice over): Shira says Liri was sometimes held with Naama and another recently released hostage, Agam Berger.

SHIRA ALBAG, MOTHER OF FORMER ISRAELI HOSTAGE LIRI ALBAG: Liri most of the time was in apartments with civilians, with families, with the women of captivity, with the children. It was difficult there because they need to stay to clean the house and to cook for them and to teach the children -- to sit with the children and to try to teach them.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): Just days after her own return, Daniella, watched as her cousin, Eli Sharabi, along with two other hostages, came home, appearing emaciated and frail. Their condition shocking almost everyone.

O. GILBOA: Daniella told me and mama, just know that if we were released two months ago, I was -- looked like Eli because she also lose a lot of weight there.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): Daniella told her mother that until recently, she shared one plate of food with three other women. Prior to her release, she says she only had to share the plate with one other.

O. GILBOA: It's important to understand that, it's not that we see Daniella how she looks like right now. It doesn't mean anything about what happened there and how she felt there.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): The priority now for these mothers, along with the majority of Israelis, is the urgent release of all the remaining hostages, and their appeal is largely directed at one man. ALBAG: President Trump had a key role in mobilizing this deal and for her to come back and we know now his influence is crucial for this continuation of the deal and for the other hostages to come home and we know how urgent it is. We see how urgent it is.

GOLODRYGA (voice over): Bianna Golodryga, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: A powerful piece.

Ahead, the Jane Doe, who accused Diddy and Jay-Z of raping her 25 years ago is dropping her lawsuit against them just months after filing the legal action. What we know about the anonymous woman's decision next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:52:01]

REID: A woman who accused rapper, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jay-Z of rape has withdrawn her case. Going by the name Jane Doe, she filed a lawsuit in October alleging she was drugged and raped by the two men 25 years ago after an MTV Music Awards after party when she was just 13 years old. Both rappers deny the allegations.

Elizabeth Wagmeister has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: A Jane Doe, who alleged she was raped by both Sean "Diddy" Combs and Jay-Z more than 20 years ago when she was 13 years old, has dropped her case against both of the music moguls.

In a Notice of Voluntary Dismissal filed on Friday, Jane Doe's attorneys dropped the case with prejudice, preventing it from being refiled in the future.

Tony Buzbee, an attorney for Jane Doe, declined to comment when I contacted him.

He also declined to comment when I asked if a settlement agreement was reached between Jane Doe and any of the defendants.

Now, Jay-Z's attorney, Alex Spiro told CNN in a statement, "The false case against Jay-Z that never should have been brought has been dismissed with prejudice. By standing up in the face of heinous and false allegations, Jay has done what few can -- he pushed back, he never settled, he never paid one red penny, he triumphed and cleared his name."

Now, Jane Doe initially filed her lawsuit against Combs in October of 2024. She alleged that she was drugged and raped by Combs, along with two other celebrities, at an after party for the MTV Video Music Awards in the year 2000, when she was just 13 years old. Jane Doe then filed an amended complaint naming Jay-Z as one of the celebrities she accused of raping her. Jay-Z vigorously denied the allegations and fought back fiercely against Jane Doe's allegations, calling them heinous. His attorneys made numerous attempts to get the case thrown out prior to Jane Doe now dropping her own case. In December, a judge had denied Jay-Z's request to dismiss the case.

Jane Doe had previously acknowledged inconsistencies in her recollection of the events from the alleged assault in 2000, but she always stood by the allegation that she was raped. Her attorney had previously told CNN, "Our client remains fiercely adamant that what she has stated is true to the best of her memory."

Attorneys for Sean "Diddy" Combs told me that Jane Doe dropping her case is, "confirmation that these lawsuits are built on falsehoods, not facts." Combs still faces more than 40 sexual assault lawsuits. He was indicted last September on sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and prostitution related charges.

Now, he has pleaded not guilty to all three charges, and his attorneys say that he has never sexually assaulted or trafficked anyone. Combs is currently in jail awaiting his criminal trial that is set to begin this May.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: Elizabeth Wagmeister, thank you.

We'll have more when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:59:33]

REID: And get ready for a new season of "Have I Got News For You."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROY WOOD JR., AMERICAN COMEDIAN AND ACTOR: Okay, here's your next group. We have Nicolas Cage, Vin Diesel, Scarlett Johansson and Rami Malek.

AMBER RUFFIN, AMERICAN COMEDIAN AND WRITER: Is it that, Scarlett Johansson was the face and the other man? All have wax figurines at Madame Tussauds?

WOOD JR.: Correct.

RUFFIN: And Rami Malek doesn't.

WOOD JR.: You go to wax museums like that? You'd be at Tussauds like that?

RUFFIN: You know how many pictures I have with Bob Marley?

(END VIDEO CLIP) REID: Watch the premiere at 9:00 Eastern and Pacific on CNN.

And thank you for joining me this evening. I'm Paula Reid. I'll see you again tomorrow night starting at 5:00 Eastern.

An encore presentation of "Real Time With Bill Maher" is up next.

[20:00:22]