Hamas let go of two American captives who were taken during their attack on Israel.
Israel said they accepted mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan from Hamas at the Gaza border.
The two people were released by Hamas because of their compassionate nature.
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, expressed great happiness about their freedom and mentioned that he had talked to the Raanan family on the phone.
These people were the first to be let go after the attackers invaded Israel on October 7th. The attackers killed 1,400 people and took about 200 hostages.
Palestinian leaders say that over 4,000 individuals have died in Gaza due to continuous attacks from Israel.
Brigadier General Gal Hirsch and IDF members collected the two hostages from Hamas at the border of the Palestinian area on Friday evening, according to the Israeli prime minister’s office.
The Raanans were brought to a military base in the middle of the country, where their family members were already waiting, according to the Prime Minister’s office.
The mom and daughter were at a place called Kibbutz Nahal Oz in southern Israel. They were taken away by force during an attack by Hamas.
The mother is 59 years old and her daughter is 17 years old. They both live in Evanston, Illinois, which is a suburb of Chicago. The daughter has just finished high school.
Natalie’s half-brother, Ben Raanan, told the BBC that he felt extremely thankful for the many people from all over the world who have been thinking about and praying for his sister. He mentioned that people from different religions and beliefs have shown their support.
Natalie’s uncle, Avi Zamir, said the family was very happy.
Evanston Rabbi Meir Hecht was very happy when he spoke to the BBC. He said that the Jewish community in the area felt very excited and happy. He also mentioned that since the people were released, he has been receiving many phone calls non-stop.
Rabbi Hecht said that we are very thankful to God for this miracle. He also mentioned that we still feel very sad for the hostages who are still there.
“Caption with media”
The leader of the church where the hostages were freed says the community is thankful.
At a gathering in Evanston on Friday night, close friend Yehudis Hecht said that Judith and the others were living a terrible life after hearing that they were taken by Hamas.
“She said that we hope they recover quickly from everything they went through, and we are praying for the safety of Israel and for all the hostages to come back safely. ”
The Raanan family were captured while they were celebrating Natalie’s graduation and her grandmother Tamar Ranaan’s 85th birthday. Tamar Ranaan had survived an attack from Hamas.
Tamar Ranaan and her partner, Yehiel, stayed safe and alive by hiding in a special room in their house.
MrBiden thanked the government of Qatar for helping to settle the situation and release the two women on Friday.
He said that US officials have been working thoroughly day and night to rescue American citizens who were captured by Hamas.
A spokesperson for Hamas, Abu Ubaida, said that the mother and daughter were let go because of humanitarian concerns. They wanted to show the American people and the world that the statements made by Biden and his oppressive government are not true and without evidence.
CNN said that the mother was not well and was getting help from the Red Cross.
Judith Raanan, who was born in Israel, worked in the US as a person who enhances people’s appearance and a person who helps others with their lives, and frequently used her Hebrew name, Yehudit, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, said that he is excited to bring the people back home who showed incredible strength and courage during a very scary and unimaginable situation.
Until Friday, the US state department stated that at least 32 American citizens had been identified as dead in the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict this month. However, there are still 10 American citizens whose whereabouts are unknown.
The US and UK are both cooperating with Qatari officials to bring back their citizens safely.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement: “We will keep talking to both the Israelis and Hamas, and we want these talks to help free all civilian hostages from any country. ”
Some other countries that have citizens currently being kept in Gaza are Argentina, Germany, France, Thailand, and Portugal.
The Ranaans were a big family that was involved in the attack.
There are eight more family members who cannot be found in Kibbutz Be’eri. Three people died, one of them was a carer.
BBC News has confirmed the names of the other family members who are believed to have been taken against their will in Gaza.
Dr Shoshan Haran, who is 67 years old, along with her daughter Adi Shoham, who is 38 years old, Adi’s partner Tal Shoham, also 38 years old, and their children, Naveh, who is 8 years old, and Yahel, who is 3 years old, are thought to have been taken away from their house.
Dr Haran started a non-profit organization called Fair Planet. They found out that a phone owned by her husband, Avshalom, was traced to Gaza. They suspect that the entire family was kidnapped.
Economist Avshalom Haran, who held dual citizenship in Germany and Israel, has passed away, as confirmed by the BBC. He was sixty-six years old.
Sharon Avigdori, who is 52 years old, her 12-year-old daughter Noam, and Lilach Kipnis, who is 60 years old, are thought to have been taken away without consent.
Lilach’s partner, Eviatar Kipnis, who was 66 years old and had Italian citizenship, sadly passed away, according to the family’s statement.
Paul Vincent Castelvi, the person who took care of Eviatar Kipnis, was also murdered.