President Biden on Sunday hailed the discharge of Avigail Idan, a 4-year-old American citizen who has been held hostage by Hamas for seven weeks, and vowed to maintain working to safe freedom for others in captivity and prolong the pause within the preventing.
“Thank God she’s home,” Mr. Biden informed reporters in Nantucket, Mass., the place he has been marking the Thanksgiving vacation. “I wish I was there to hold her.”
Avigail, whose identify has been rendered as Abigail in American media, is a twin U.S. and Israeli citizen and was seized throughout the Hamas terrorist assault on Oct. 7 after her dad and mom have been killed. Her case has been the main target of widespread worldwide consideration and concern as she marked her fourth birthday on Friday. She was amongst a complete of 17 individuals held captive who have been turned over on Sunday, and Mr. Biden stated she was “safely in Israel.”
The president stated the non permanent truce was not solely ensuing within the launch of hostages however the provision of extra help to civilians in Gaza, with 200 vehicles of meals, water, drugs, gasoline and cooking gasoline arriving every day. He stated he hoped to increase the unique deal to launch 50 hostages in change for Palestinians jailed by Israel and a four-day pause in Israel’s navy operation, in order that extra captives might be freed and the maintain on preventing can proceed.
“More is needed but this deal is delivering lifesaving results,” Mr. Biden stated. “Critical aid is going in and hostages are coming out. This deal is structured so that it can be extended to keep building on these results. That’s my goal, that’s our goal, to keep this pause going beyond tomorrow so that we can continue to see more hostages come out and surge more humanitarian relief to those in need in Gaza.”
