SUMMARY

Journalists join the NewsHour to weigh in on the Biden administration’s foreign policy efforts as U.S. officials push for more hostages to be released by Hamas and what’s ahead in the Republican presidential primary. Currently, there is a four-day pause in the war.

As of Friday, when this story was produced, all of the 13 hostages returned to Israel were Israeli; there are hostages from various countries, including the U.S. As of Sunday, 17 people were freed by Hamas, including the first with U.S. citizenship: a four-year-old girl whose parents were killed in the Oct. 7 attacks.

Time Marker:

*If time is limited, watch from beginning to 6m:02s to hear about Biden's foreign policy efforts.

*Watch from 6m:03s to end to hear about the Republican presidential primary.

For a transcript of this story, click here.

News wrap alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.

WARM UP QUESTIONS:

1. Where is the pressure on President Joe Biden coming from regarding the Israel-Hamas war? (see Reuters article, US public support for Israel drops; majority backs a ceasefire.)
2. Why is there controversy surrounding the proposed bill that includes aid for Ukraine and Israel?
3. Who may come under pressure to split this bill into pieces?
4. What is the current status of the release of Israeli -- and American -- hostages? Are hostages from other countries or with dual citizenship besides the U.S. mentioned in this piece? (see Reuters article "More than half of Hamas' hostages have foreign nationality - Israel.")
5. When did the release of 13 Israeli hostages described in this piece occur?

FOCUS QUESTIONS

Reporter Nick Schifrin: "There is a lot of pressure on the left, some of it generational, but not all of it, to call for a cease-fire. That is not something that many members of the Democratic Party have followed. And yet there are calls for the president to basically rein in the Israelis even more. Can he resist that pressure? Should he resist that pressure?"

1. What do you make of the fact that both the left-leaning and right-leaning journalists support the idea of the American people standing behind Biden who has rejected calls for a cease-fire?

2. A majority of Americans support a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, according to various polls (Reuters article, US public support for Israel drops; majority backs a ceasefire.), so to whom is the reference, "That is not something that many members of the Democratic Party have followed," being made?

3. What is the significance of the recent release of Israeli hostages in Gaza? What is happening to hostages from other countries? (see Time article above, conduct an internet search, or read "More than half of Hamas' hostages have foreign nationality - Israel" via Reuters, which states, "More than half the estimated 220 hostages held by Palestinian group Hamas have foreign passports from 25 different countries, including 54 Thai nationals, the Israeli government said on Wednesday.")

4. Do you think pressure or diplomacy from the U.S. has a role in resolving the conflict between Israel and Hamas?

Media literacy:

1. Do you think the piece should have included mention of Palestinian prisoners who were also released (Note: Some analysts disagree with this terminology since many of these prisoners were not officially charged with any crimes and were being held under "administrative detention" and suggest additional wording be added for clarity and nuance.), many of whom were children, including girls, who were not officially charged with any crimes?

2. Where can you find out more about the Biden administration’s foreign policy efforts?

Alternative: See, Think, Wonder: What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What story would you want to find out more about? Where would you go to learn more?

FOR MORE

What students can do:

*Having trouble understanding what has been happening in Gaza since October 7 (and the history that led to that moment?) See this collection of stories to find out more.

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