Anderson Cooper 'Broke Down' Over 'Horrors He Witnessed' After Returning Home From Israel: Report
Anderson Cooper was overcome with emotions after returning home from Israel.
Stone-faced CNN anchor Anderson Cooper reportedly "couldn't stop crying" after returning from covering the war in Israel, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Insiders claimed Cooper, 56, broke down after he returned home because of the "horrors he witnessed" in the Middle East.
Cooper was sent to Israel to cover the ongoing situation in Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attacks.
"The weight of the horrors he witnessed proved too much for him," a source dished to the National Enquirer.
"He tried to address the audience at a Jewish event and just broke down crying onstage," the insider added. "He literally couldn't speak and lowered his head and sobbed."
Israeli officials reported 240 citizens were taken hostage by Hamas into Gaza.
A close pal of the prime time anchor echoed the insider and said that Cooper may swear off visiting war zones after his recent Israel trip.
"He's a father now and the risks, emotionally and physically, are just too high," the friend noted.
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Insiders claimed Cooper may be done with covering war zones after his Israel coverage.
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After the October 7 Hamas attacks, the CNN anchor and several colleagues were dispatched to Israel to cover the situation as it unfolded. Days after over 1,000 Israelis were killed and a reported 240 Israeli civilians were taken hostage by Hamas, Cooper broke down on-air while reporting live from Tel Aviv.
An interview aired of an Israeli woman whose entire family was kidnapped in the October 7 attack. After the footage played, the seasoned 56-year-old anchor struggled to compose himself as cameras returned to his report.
Cooper remained silent for 15 seconds, an eternity for TV news, while he fought back tears.
More than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed since the military campaign began.
At one point, Cooper tried to conceal his emotions and even turned his back and took several steps away from the camera, before he returned to his report with glassy eyes.
The award-winning journalist's voice cracked as he continued, clearly overcome by the heartbreaking coverage of the Israeli woman's reality and her desperate pleas for his network to help in someway bring her entire family home.
Cooper appeared to be personally affected by the ongoing tragedies in the region, especially since becoming a father.
The anchor shares sons Wyatt, 3, and 15-month-old Sebastian, with his former partner Benjamin Maisani.
Over a month has passed since Cooper's emotional October 10 report and the situation in Gaza has only gotten worse. Over 11,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been reportedly killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza, where nearly half of the 2.2 million are children.
Only a handful of hostages have been released by Hamas, which included two Americans, a mother and daughter who happened to be visiting family and friends in Israel when the attacks occurred.
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