By Jeff Mason
NANTUCKET, Massachusetts (Reuters) -President Joe Biden said a 4-year-old U.S. hostage held by Hamas was released from captivity in Gaza and returned to Israel on Sunday, adding that he was working to release others.
Biden shared that the hostage, Abigail Edan, had witnessed Hamas fighters killing her parents during an Oct. 7 raid into Israel and had been held as a captive since then. He emphasized that she turned 4 years old while in captivity.
“What she endured is unthinkable,” Biden emphasized during a news conference.
Edan’s release was part of a deal to exchange 50 hostages held by the Palestinian militant group for 150 prisoners in Israeli jails over a four-day truce period.
“We hoped and prayed today would come,” Liz Hirsh Naftali and Noa Naftali, Edan’s great aunt and cousin, said in a statement, expressing gratitude to Biden and the Qatari government for their efforts in securing Edan’s release. “There are no words to express our relief and gratitude that Abigail is safe and coming home.”
Biden had a conversation with members of Edan’s family in the United States and Israel after her release, as reported by the White House.
Hamas released 17 hostages on Sunday, and Israel was anticipated to free 39 Palestinian prisoners in return.
This marks the first cessation in the conflict since Hamas fighters rampaged through southern Israel on Oct. 7, resulting in the death of 1,200 people and the capture of approximately 240 hostages, according to Israeli officials. Hamas justifies its armed activities as resistance against Israeli occupation.
In retaliation, Israel pledged to eliminate the Hamas militants who control Israeli-occupied Gaza, launching attacks on the enclave and conducting a ground offensive in the north. Palestinian health authorities state that Israel has killed about 14,800 people, with around 40% of them being children.
In a call with Biden on Sunday, Netanyahu expressed his gratitude for the President’s “tireless efforts to help broker and fully implement” the deal to release hostages, according to a White House readout of the call.
The two leaders have committed to continuing their work to secure the release of all hostages, the White House reported, and will “remain in close contact over the coming days.”
Biden indicated that he anticipates Hamas to release other U.S. hostages and stressed his desire for the fighting pause to be extended as long as prisoners are being released.
“We will not stop working until every hostage is returned to their loved ones,” Biden vowed.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason in Nantucket, Andy Sullivan and Moira Warburton in Washington and Jason Lange in Buffalo, NY; Editing by David Goodman, Alexander Smith, Mark Porter and Josie Kao)
