On Friday, Gaza’s Hamas rulers freed two Americans among the 200 hostages they kidnapped in the October 7 bombings in Israel, and warned that more could come.
According to the Israeli government, Judith Tai Raanan and her daughter Natalie Shoshana Raanan returned to Israel late Friday.
There was no word on their condition, but US President Joe Biden was “overjoyed” by the news.
In addition, Hamas announced it was working with Qatar and Egypt to free its “civilian” hostages, implying that more could be released.
An Israeli ambassador met the couple at the Gaza border, and the two women were brought to a military base in central Israel “where their families are waiting to meet them.”
On October 7, an American mother and her daughter were apprehended at the Nahal Oz kibbutz near the Israel-Gaza border. They were on vacation in Israel at the time, according to reports.
The Ranaan family, like many of the captives, had begun a worldwide campaign to pressure Israel to release them.
Following contacts from Qatar and Egypt, Hamas stated that “(Ezzedine) al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens for humanitarian reasons.”
Sliver Of Hope
The Islamist rulers of Gaza stated that they are “working with all mediators to implement the movement’s decision to close the civilian (hostage) file if appropriate security conditions allow.” It provided no specifics about its demands.
Israel claims that 203 persons, including Israelis, dual nationals, and foreigners, were seized by Hamas terrorists during the bloodiest attacks in Israel’s 75-year history. According to the authorities, at least 1,400 individuals were murdered, the majority of whom were civilians.
According to the Hamas administration, Israel has retaliated with a continuous bombing campaign against the Gaza Strip, killing at least 4,137 persons, the majority of whom were civilians.
The hostages have become a huge problem in Israel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stating that the government will use “any means available to locate all those missing and bring home all those kidnapped.”
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, it assisted in transporting the released Americans to Israel.
Its president, Mirjana Spoljaric, said their liberation gave relatives of other captives “a sliver of hope” and urged all sides in the war to display “a minimum of humanity.”
The announcement came two days after Biden paid a solidarity visit to Israel to express his condolences for the attack.
“Our fellow citizens have endured a terrible ordeal these past 14 days, and I am overjoyed that they will soon be reunited with their family, who has been wracked with fear,” he said in a statement.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for more releases “immediately and unconditionally”.
Qatar is a major assistance provider to Gaza, and two Hamas leaders are stationed there. According to a spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, the country mediated between Hamas and the US, and the release came after “many days of continuous communication between all parties involved.”
“We will continue our dialogue with both the Israelis and Hamas, and we hope these efforts will lead to the release of all civilian hostages from every nationality, with the ultimate aim of de-escalating the current crisis and restoring peace,” said the spokesman, Majid al-Ansari.
The Israeli military maintained on Friday that the majority of individuals abducted to Gaza were still alive, despite the fact that some dead bodies had been discovered during forays into Gaza.
According to the military, more than 20 hostages were minors, while 10 to 20 were beyond the age of 60.
The army also stated that between 100 and 200 persons had gone missing after the Hamas strikes.