Hamas said on Friday it had released two US hostages – a mother and daughter – for what it called “humanitarian reasons” following Qatari mediation efforts.
Hamas armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida issued a statement announcing the release, the first since gunmen from the Islamist militant group burst into Israel on October 7, killing 1,400 people, mainly civilians, and taking around 200 hostages.
Abu Ubaida said they released the citizens “for humanitarian reasons, and to prove to the American people and the world that the claims made by [President Joe] Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless”.
The Islamist group did not detail how or when the hostages were released.
Israel’s Channel 13 News said Israel had confirmed the release of two hostages but gave no further details.
The Israeli military said earlier on Friday that most of those abducted to Gaza were still alive.
“The majority of the hostages are alive. There were also dead bodies that were taken … to the Gaza Strip,” an army statement said.
The military said more than 20 hostages were minors, while between 10 and 20 were over the age of 60.
Israel says bodies of hostages taken by Hamas found in Gaza
Israel says bodies of hostages taken by Hamas found in Gaza
There are also between 100 and 200 people considered missing since the Hamas attacks, the army added.
On October 7, the Palestinian militant group carried out a deadly assault on Israel, the worst in the country’s 75-year history.
Israel has responded with a relentless bombardment that has killed at least 4,137 people in the Gaza Strip, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse
