Father of American teenage hostage freed by Hamas says she is ‘doing very good’
Two elderly Israeli hostages have been released by Hamas in a deal The Independent understands was brokered by Qatar and Egypt.
The two detainees are Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, and Nurit Yitzhak, 79, both kidnapped from the same kibbutz – Nir Oz – near the border with Gaza on 7 October, when Hamas launched an attack which killed 1,400 Israelis.
It comes as US president Joe Biden told The Independent that the US would not advocate for a deal with Hamas over hostages in return for a ceasefire.
“We should have these hostages released and then we can talk,” Mr Biden said in response to a question at a press conference after the hostage release was announced.
It comes as 5,100 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel vowed to eradicate Hamas and began its bombing campaign of the territory, Gazan officials said.
Meanwhile, the IDF said it had began more “limited raids” into Gaza to kill Hamas gunmen and search for hostages taken from southern Israel.
