Hamas released Edan AlexanderConsidered the last American citizen living in hostage in Gaza on Monday while President Trump left Washington for a trip For Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, officials said. Alexander was transferred to the Red Cross then later to the Israeli Defense forces.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Israeli government “will help his absorption and accompany him as well as his family.” Netanyahu’s office published a video of Alexandre transferred in the hands of the FDI.
“The Israeli government is attached to the return of all kidnappings and missing – both the living and the dead,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
Trump was delighted with the release of Alexander. “Congratulations to his wonderful parents, family and friends!” He wrote On his social media platform, social social.
Israeli defense forces / IDF / Handout / Anadolu via Getty Images
Hamas, a terrorist group designated in the United States and Israeli, said that he Liberate Alexandre Without conditions in the hope of working on a lasting ceasefire in Gaza and to renew the flow of vital humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory besieged. On Monday, the International Committee of the Red Cross declared in a statement, without identifying Alexandre, that he had “succeeded in facilitating the sure transfer of a Gaza hostage to the Israeli authorities”.
Alexander, who is now 21, grew up in New Jersey before moving to Israel, where he served in the Israeli army on October 7, 2023 when he was abducted during the orchestrated Hamas attack which triggered the War in Gaza.
In February, CBS News spoke to the mother of Alexander, Yael, who said that she was doing everything she could to fight for the release of her son and continue to go for her other children.
“It’s not easy, but you know what, I take the strength of my children to go well and wake up every morning and to put clothes … to smile, hug them, tell them how much I love them and give them a lot of hope that Edan is fine.”
The Smarting and Smart Families forum welcomed the news of the Liberation of Alexander and said that they would organize a march on the United States Embassy in Israel on Monday to demand “a pierced and complete agreement” to bring the remaining hostages to the house.
Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed to CBS News that he would go to the region before Alexander’s release, and local media said he had arrived earlier on Monday.
Hamas said on Sunday that the decision to release Alexander came after “contacts with the American administration in the past few days” and that the group was ready to “immediately start intensive negotiations to exercise serious efforts to reach a final agreement to end the war, establish an exchange of mutually agreed prisoners, and that the Gaza Strip was administered by an independent professional body.
In an article on Truth Social, Mr. Trump described the move “A stage of good faith towards the United States and the efforts of the mediators – Qatar and Egypt – to put an end to this very brutal war and to return all living hostages and remains to their loved ones. I hope this is the first of these last steps necessary to put an end to this brutal conflict. ”
The Netanyahu office had declared in a statement that “Israel did not commit to any cease-fire or the release of terrorists, but only to a safe corridor which would allow the release of Idan.” The Israeli government uses this spelling of Alexander’s first name.
“We are on critical days when Hamas is faced with an agreement that will release our hostages,” said the Prime Minister’s office. “Negotiations will continue under fire and while preparations are made to intensify the fighting.”
Israel prevents the entry of food and medical aid in Gaza for almost three months, with aid groups saying that malnutrition increases through the enclave. Food security experts said in a report published on Monday that the Gaza population faced a critical risk of famine.
“The entire population is faced with high levels of acute food insecurity, with half a million people (one in five) faced with famine,” said the classification group of the food security phase integrated into a report. “With the announced expansion of military operations throughout the Gaza Strip, the persistent inability of humanitarian agencies to access populations with an urgent need, a planned climbing of hostilities and the continuous mass movement of people, the risk of famine in the Gaza Strip is not only possible – it is more and more likely.”
Also on Monday, Israeli strikes were reported in a school that has become Shelter in the Jabaliya district of Gaza, killing 16 people – mainly women and children – according to the Ministry of Health managed by Hamas there.
contributed to this report.