Breaking news has come in that two more hostages have been released by Hamas on Monday, October 23 following the release of two American women this past Friday, October 20. The announcement was made by a Hamas spokesperson, which was later confirmed by sources connected to CBS News.
The humanitarian efforts of Qatar and Egypt were responsible for facilitating this release with assistance from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). ICRC tweeted that they are willing to help out with any future releases as well.
BREAKING: Hamas has released 2 more hostages, multiple sources tell CBS News. Over 200 others are still being held, Israel says. https://t.co/IU7EjWekSv
— CBS News (@CBSNews) October 23, 2023
Israel Defense Forces have indicated that 222 people were taken hostage during Hamas’ deadly October 7th rampage into Israel. Out of these hostages, between 10 and 20 are over 80 years old while more than 20 are under 18 years old.
On Friday, two US-Israeli dual citizens Judith and Natalie Raanan who live in Evanston, Illinois and had gone to visit family in Israel were released from captivity and welcomed back by family members in Israel courtesy of mediation from the ICRC helping them get home safely.
During his visit to Tel Aviv last week, President Biden said his top priority was securing freedom for all those held captive by Hamas forces. Moreover, US officials have reportedly been trying to slow down Israel’s plans for launching a ground invasion into Gaza so that they could focus on releasing hostages as well as distributing aid instead.
State Department spokesman Matt Miller spoke about how Pentagon has been engaging Israeli military channels regarding what their operations should look like but declined giving further details other than saying that these decisions ultimately rest upon the Israeli government themselves.
This is a developing story with new details still coming in.
