A young American-Israeli girl, 4, was among 17 hostages who were released from Hamas in Gaza on Sunday, the latest group to be freed.
Abigail Edan, the young girl who celebrated her fourth birthday in captivity days ago, marks the first American to be released from the terror group since the parties agreed to a temporary ceasefire that commenced on Friday. Prior to her release, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there were nine United States citizens and one U.S. Green Card holder being held by Hamas.
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Biden confirmed in remarks that Edan’s “free and she’s in Israel now,” and he said he was “hopeful” that the other Americans would be released soon.
“Based on information that was received from the Red Cross, 14 Israeli hostages and three foreign national hostages have been transferred to the Red Cross,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Sunday evening local time.
Edan’s parents were killed in the Oct. 7 terror attacks, where she and roughly 240 others were kidnapped and brought back to Gaza, where they have spent the last seven weeks in hiding.
Of the 17 hostages, one was airlifted by helicopter to a hospital, 12 were taken through the border fence directly from Gaza to Israel, and four others were freed through the Rafah border crossing, like the hostages that were released Friday and Saturday, according to the IDF.
In total, Hamas agreed to free roughly 50 hostages — women and children — over the course of a roughly four- to five-day period, though there is the possibility that the temporary ceasefire could be extended if Hamas releases additional hostages.
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Officials believe Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, another terrorist group based in Gaza, are holding roughly 240 people, hostage, meaning that the entirety of the deal as currently constructed would free less than 25% of the hostages who have been held for more than six weeks.
