Another 17 hostages have been turned over to the Red Cross by Hamas, and President Biden says a US-Israeli girl whose parents were killed in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel is among them. Abigail Edan, 4, was on the list that included eight other children ages 17 and younger, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said, per the AP. Fourteen of the 17 people are Israelis, the Washington Post reports. "She's free and she's in Israel now," President Biden said Sunday in televised remarks. He said he had no information on the girl's condition.
"She's been through a terrible trauma," Biden said. "Her mom was killed in front of her. … Abigail ran to her dad then, and was gunned down as well while trying to shield little Abigail." Abigail, who was taken from the Kfar Aza kibbutz, became the first American freed since the exchanges of hostages for prisoners held by Israel began. A spokesman for Qatar, which has been mediating, said Israel released 39 more Palestinian prisoners on Sunday. All are minors, NBC News. Monday is the final day of the ceasefire, and another exchange is planned. Israeli military leaders said Saturday the attack in Gaza will resume as soon as the ceasefire expires.
The oldest hostage freed Sunday is Alma Avraham, 84, per CNN. Biden, who spoke from Nantucket, Massachusetts, said he'll keep working with other nations to secure the release of more hostages. "The proof that this is working and worth pursuing further is in every smile and every grateful tears we see on the faces of those families who are finally getting back together again," Biden said, per the Post. He added that more than 20 children held in Gaza now have been freed. (More Israel-Hamas war stories.)
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