This is the incredible moment an Illinois mother and daughter returned safely to Israel after being kidnapped and held hostage by Hamas for 13 days.
Judith Tai Raanan and her daughter Natalie Shoshana Raanan returned to Israel late Friday after leaving Gaza through an Egyptian-controlled border crossing, the Israeli government confirmed.
An image of the two being returned to Israel was also shared by authorities in the region, with the pair surrounded by armed soldiers.
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Hamas still fears it is holding 10 Americans hostage.
The Foreign Secretary revealed the missing figure during a press conference announcing the release of Judith and Natalie Raanan.
Judith Tai Raanan and her daughter Natalie Shoshana Raanan arrived back in Israel late Friday, the Israeli government confirmed
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told reporters that 10 Americans remain hostages of Hamas after news that mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan of Illinois were released Friday
Hamas hostages Judith Raanan and Natalie Raanan, a mother and daughter from Chicago, were released by the terrorist group
Blinken said he could not offer any further information on the “status or condition” of the Americans believed to still be in Hamas custody following the Oct. 7 terror attacks. He also refused to comment further on how the Raanans are faring after the handover.
Blinken told reporters: “We welcome the release (of the Raanans”). We share the relief felt by their families, friends and loved ones.
“But there are still 10 more Americans missing in this conflict.”
“Some of them are being held hostage by Hamas along with an estimated 200 other hostages held in Gaza.” These include men, women and young boys, young girls and people from many nations. Every single one of them should be released.’
The Chron was first to confirm the identities of Judith Raanan and Natalie Raanan, a mother and daughter from Chicago who were visiting Israel for a relative’s birthday when they were kidnapped.
Hamas’ armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida issued a statement Friday announcing the release, nearly two weeks after the militant group took around 200 hostages in an Oct. 7 attack that killed 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed.
Judith and Natalie were handed over to the Red Cross at the Egyptian border with Gaza and are now on their way to a military base in the center of the country, where their family awaits them.
President Biden released a statement saying his administration had “secured the release” of the Raanians and expressed condolences for the “horrible ordeal” they endured.
He added that he was “overjoyed” by the women’s release and that he was continuing to work to free other captured Americans.
Earlier this week, Martin Fletcher, one of MSNBC’s longtime Middle East correspondents, broke down when he revealed that hostages Judith and Natalie Raanan were members of his wife’s family.
“They were last seen with their hands tied as they were being dragged away by Hamas terrorists.” So it’s personal, it’s real and no one is really confident that it’s possible to bring them back to life. “Of course everyone hopes,” Fletcher told Stephanie Ruhle on Thursday.
Through tears, Fletcher said, “Hamas is using the hostages for psychological warfare.”
He described the conflict as a “very personal matter.”
“Nobody is really confident that it’s possible to get her back alive,” he added.
Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, said the mother and daughter were released “on humanitarian grounds” in response to Qatar’s mediation efforts.
In a defiant statement, Abu Ubaida said the move would “prove to the American people and the world that the claims of Biden and his fascist government are false and baseless.”
Israel responded to the Hamas massacre and hostage crisis with airstrikes on Gaza that Hamas said killed more than 4,000 people and said it would take measures to free the hostages while wiping out the terror group.
Seventeen-year-old Natalie (above) and her mother were visiting family in Israel for the Jewish holidays and a relative’s 85th birthday
Israelis whose relatives were taken hostage in a Hamas attack demonstrate during a meeting between US President Joe Biden and Israeli leaders earlier this week
Israeli tanks and troops are massed near the enclave for an expected ground invasion and are calling on Palestinians to evacuate northern Gaza, where Hamas is said to have established itself.
Israel has also stated that the total blockade of the enclave will not end until the Israeli hostages are released.
Hamas says it has around 200 hostages and 50 more are being held by other armed groups in the enclave.
The group claimed more than 20 hostages were killed by Israeli airstrikes but gave no further details.
Mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan were visiting Israel from Chicago when they were kidnapped
Natalie Raanan is a typical 17-year-old: She loves art, makeup, fashion and DoorDash — “she hates eating at home,” her brother Ben Raanan told The Associated Press this week.
She graduated high school this year in a Chicago suburb and has a birthday coming up, according to her brother, who is 34 and lives in Denver.
Before traveling to Israel to celebrate her grandmother’s 85th birthday and the Jewish holidays with her mother, Judith Raanan, the teenager considered whether she wanted to go to college and study interior design or fashion design or apprentice at a tattoo shop.
The couple sent updates over the course of the trip and enjoyed “this really special time together with mother and daughter,” said Rabbi Meir Hecht.
But since Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack, the family had not heard from the mother or daughter.
Natalie Raanan was visiting her family for the High Holidays with her mother Judith when the attack began on October 7th
Judith Raanan and her daughter were also taken hostage
Natalie is “just a very loving, kind person,” said her older brother Ben Raanan.
Her middle brother, Adam, is nonverbal and much older than her, but Natalie makes it a point to maintain a strong bond with him, he explained.
According to Ben Raanan, who spoke before news of Friday’s release, the family has been in contact with both U.S. and Israeli government officials who confirmed that Natalie and Judith were alive and being held hostage by Hamas.
“This whole situation is surreal,” he said. “We are a very peaceful family. “We are not advocating violence against anyone in this world at all.”
Judith Raanan was very active in her faith community, Chabad of Evanston, said her friend and the rabbi’s wife, Yehudis Hecht.
Judith came to Shabbat almost every week, helped prepare the kiddush lunch—the meal served after the service—and, shortly before leaving for Israel, delivered a pink prayer book for the Hechts’ seven-year-old daughter, who loves the color, said Yehudis Hecht.
In the days following the Hamas attack, a few dozen community members gathered to pray for the Raanans’ safe return – and rejoiced at the news of their safe release.
“Judith, we are thinking of you,” said Yehudis Hecht at the event.
“Of your resilience, your hope, your love, your generosity, your faith and your strength.”
“We know you are a strong woman and we pray that we will see you safely again soon with your dear Natalie.”