Israeli ground assault on Gaza looms as Hamas releases first hostages

Seventeen-year-old Natalie Raanan and mother Judith are escorted by Israeli officials after they were released by Hamas after two weeks of captivity in Gaza.Seventeen-year-old Natalie Raanan and mother Judith are escorted by Israeli officials after they were released by Hamas after two weeks of captivity in Gaza.

“The president was far away. He didn’t hear the full question,” White House communications director Ben LaBolt said. “The question sounded like: ‘Would you like to see more hostages released?’ He wasn’t commenting on anything else,” LaBolt added. Biden said he was “overjoyed” at the release and pledged to continue his efforts to secure the freedom of additional hostages. “We have been working around-the-clock to free American citizens who were taken hostage by Hamas. We will not stop until we secure the release of those who are still being held,” he said.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said the release of the two Americans was “a very good result” and expressed hope it could help pave the way for others to be freed, including French-Israelis feared held in Gaza. On Saturday, the UN secretary general, António Guterres, was expected to attend a conference on Saturday convened by the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, with Arab, European and African leaders focused on building pressure for a ceasefire and humanitarian relief.

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