Two American women — a mother and daughter — held hostage by the terrorist organization Hamas have been freed, Israeli officials announced Friday, multiple media outlets including ABC News reported.
The women — identified as 59-year-old Yehudit Raanan (also called Judith) and 17-year-old Nathalie Raanan by ABC News and Chicago Sun-Times — were placed in the custody of the Red Cross and are now safe in Israel.
CNN cited a source who said they were released for “humanitarian reasons” because the elder Ranaan was in poor health.
The media also reported that Hamas confirmed the release in a statement, saying: “In response to Qatari efforts, the Al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons, and to prove to the American people and the world that they the claims of Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless.”
In a statement, President Joe Biden confirmed the release of the two Americans held hostage by Hamas, saying, “Our fellow citizens have endured a terrible ordeal over the past 14 days, and I am overjoyed that they will soon be reunited with their family, who have been devastated by fear.” . These individuals and their families will have the full support of the United States government as they recover and receive treatment, and we should all respect their privacy at this time.”
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NBC correspondent Martin Fletcher said in a guest appearance on The eleventh hour with Stephanie Ruhle Thursday that the two women – whom he did not name – were members of his wife’s family.
“We are talking about six degrees of separation. So Israel is a tiny country with only one or two degrees of separation,” Fletcher said. “So I just found out today that two of my wife’s family members are among the hostages.”
Martin Fletcher.
Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty
He continued: “So we know that what we found out about Hamas, that they were told to kill the difficult ones and use the rest as human shields. So this is very personal.”
“They’re from Evanston, Illinois. They’re American. They were visiting their grandmother for her 85th birthday. And they were last seen with their hands tied, being dragged away by Hamas terrorists,” he said.
Fletcher added: “So it’s personal, it’s real and nobody’s really convinced that it’s possible to bring them back alive. Of course, everybody’s hopeful.”
While Fletcher did not name the women during his appearance, two were released today from Evanston, Illinois.
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,400 people and plunging the area into war.
According to reports, more than 190 Israelis are being held hostage in Gaza The New York Timesincluding US citizens.
After the attack, Israel announced a “total siege” of Gaza, carrying out widespread airstrikes across the Gaza Strip that killed at least 3,478 people.
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