Hamas this evening announced the release of two more women, who were kidnapped during the October 7 attack on Israeli soil and have since been held hostage in the Gaza Strip.
Abu Ubaidah, a spokesman for Hamas' military wing, said the release of the two hostages was decided on humanitarian and medical grounds, thanks to the mediation of Qatar and Egypt.
Al Jazeera names the freed hostages as Nurit Itzhak and Johved Livsic, citing a post by the Al-Qassam Brigades on the Telegram platform. The Israeli channel Channel 12 reports that it is 79-year-old Nurit Cooper and 85-year-old Yoheved Livsitch, who were kidnapped from the Nir Oz kibbutz and their husbands remain hostage.
The two elderly women have already arrived at the Rafah border crossing, the Egyptian news agency reported, underlining that "Egypt's diplomatic efforts for the release of two women" held hostage in the Gaza Strip have been successful.
Hamas's announcement came three days after the release of two American women. Hamas did not specify the nationality of the two women it freed today, although it has suggested they are Israeli. "The enemy had refused to receive them last Friday," Ubaidah claimed, repeating a claim Israel had dismissed as "false propaganda."
Israel estimates that more than 220 hostages – Israelis and nationals of other countries – were taken to the Gaza Strip after the unprecedented attack by Hamas on October 7. Since then the Israeli armed forces have been pounding the Palestinian enclave and preparing for a ground attack.
Source: RES-EAP
