Hamas nonetheless has 9 American hostages, the White Home confirmed on Monday, a day after a four-year-old lady grew to become the primary American hostage taken through the Oct. 7 assault in Israel to be launched.
Abigail Edan was reunited together with her prolonged household on Sunday, considered one of 17 hostages launched that day. Abigail’s mom and father had been shot useless in entrance of her of their house on Kibbutz Kfar Azza throughout Hamas’ bloodbath.
President Biden needs the remaining Individuals to be included in a brand new spherical of hostage releases anticipated over the following few days, John Kirby, a spokesman for the White Home’s Nationwide Safety Council, stated on Monday, quickly after Israel and Hamas agreed to increase a ceasefire for 2 extra days. Israel initially agreed to pause the bombardment of Gaza for 4 days and launch 150 Palestinian prisoners held within the West Financial institution in alternate for 50 hostages being returned house from Gaza.
Biden spent the weekend making calls on the negotiations across the ceasefire from Nantucket island off the coast of Massachusetts, the place he spent the Thanksgiving vacation on the waterfront home of investor David Rubenstein.
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On Saturday, Biden spoke with Qatar’s Emir Sheik Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at a “very important second” to “assist resolve an deadlock,” involving which hostages can be launched, Kirby stated. On Sunday, Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to attempt to discover phrases underneath which Israel would agree to increase the four-day pause in combating by one other two days.
The preliminary pause in combating allowed the biggest single convoy carrying humanitarian help to enter Gaza because the Oct. 7 assaults, Kirby stated. 2 hundred vehicles had been despatched to the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Sunday and 137 vehicles of provides had been unloaded by the United Nations in Gaza. In latest weeks, the US authorities has assisted greater than 840 Americans and their households depart Gaza and enter Egypt, Kirby stated.
Because the Israeli army has waged a marketing campaign to kill Hamas’s army leaders and destroy the group’s in depth tunnel community constructed underneath Gaza, greater than 15,000 individuals in Gaza have been killed, in keeping with the Hamas-run well being ministry. Biden has confronted heavy criticism from some Democrats for not doing extra to stress Israel to do extra to keep away from civilian casualties.
Kirby advised on Monday that Biden’s dealing with of the scenario up to now had performed a key position within the fragile progress towards peace made in latest days. “The president understands that there’s robust emotions on a number of sides,” Kirby stated. “He additionally believes proper right down to his core, that the method we’ve been taking has been getting outcomes.”