Earlier today, Hamas released 17 hostages, including 13 Israelis and four foreign nationals, who had been held in the Gaza Strip for seven weeks.
In the third exchange under a temporary four-day truce between the Islamist militant group and Israel, which released 39 Palestinian young men — all teenagers, including a 14-year-old — were freed from Israeli prisons in exchange, the U.S. said it hoped the fragile cease-fire between warring factions would be extended.
Some hostages were handed over directly to Israel, while others left through Egypt.
President Joe Biden said the elderly woman who was airlifted to a hospital by Israel’s army was “very sick and was in need of immediate medical help.” Hundreds of Israelis draped in flags cheered as freed hostages, waving, arrived at an air force base.
The freed hostages ranged in age from 4 to 84 and included Abigail Edan, a 4-year-old girl and dual citizen whose parents were killed in the Hamas attack that started the war on Oct. 7.
When Hamas militants stormed her kibbutz, Kfar Azza, on Oct. 7 and killed her parents along with more than 1,400 other people, Edan knew enough to run to a neighbor’s for shelter. The Brodutch family — mother Hagar and her three children — took Abigail in as the rampage raged. Then all five were confirmed by the government to be captives of Hamas, among more than 200 people dragged to Gaza.
“What she endured was unthinkable,” said Biden of Edan, the first American freed under the truce.
He did not know her condition or have updates on other American hostages but said his goal was to extend the cease-fire deal as long as possible.
Abigail’s great aunt, Liz Hirsh Naftali, and cousin, Noa Naftali, said in a statement on Sunday that they had “no words to express our relief and gratitude that Abigail is safe and coming home.”
“We hoped and prayed today would come,” the Naftalis said. “Today’s release proves that it’s possible. We can get all hostages back home. We have to keep pushing.”
Two other American women were on the list to be freed Sunday, although it was not immediately clear whether they were released, too.
Biden pledged US diplomatic efforts to extend the pause in fighting, allowing more hostages to be released and aid to reach Gaza.
Edan was one of nine children ages 17 and younger who were released, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
A fourth exchange is expected on Monday — the last day of the cease-fire during which a total of 50 hostages and 150 Palestinian prisoners are to be freed. Most are women and minors. Many Palestinians view prisoners held by Israel, including those implicated in attacks, as heroes resisting occupation.
Hamas said it wanted to extend its four-day truce with Israel beyond Monday. In a statement, Hamas asked “to extend the truce after the four-day period ends, through serious efforts to increase the number of those released from imprisonment as stipulated in the humanitarian ceasefire agreement.”
“What we are hoping for is that the momentum that has carried from the releases … and from this agreement of four days will allow us to extend the truce beyond these four days, and therefore get into more serious discussions about the rest of the hostages,” said Majed Al-Ansari, a spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry, which played a central role in mediating the agreement.
The truce includes a provision for an extension of one extra day for every ten hostages released by Hamas.
“We can get all hostages back home. We have to keep pushing,” said two of Edan’s relatives, a great aunt and cousin, in a statement thanking mediators.
Separately, Hamas said it released a Russian hostage “in response to the efforts of Russian President Vladimir Putin.” The Russian-Israeli citizen was the first male hostage to be freed.