President Donald Trump revealed that Edan Alexander, 21, who is believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas, was released and “coming home to his family.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump expressed gratefulness “to all those involved” in making Alexander’s release happen. Trump added that Alexander’s release by Hamas terrorists was “a step taken in good faith towards the United States and the efforts of the mediators” in order to end the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
“I am happy to announce that Edan Alexander, an American citizen who has been held hostage since October 2023, is coming home to his family,” Trump said. “I am grateful to all those involved in making this monumental news happen. This was a step taken in good faith towards the United States and the efforts of the mediators — Qatar and Egypt — to put an end to this very brutal war and return ALL living hostages and remains to their loved ones.”
Trump expressed hope that Alexander’s release was “the first of those final steps necessary” to end the ongoing war conflict.
Trump’s post comes after Hamas issued a statement on Sunday evening that Alexander would be released.
Senior Hamas negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya explained in a statement that Hamas was affirming “its readiness to immediately start intensive negotiations, and make serious efforts” to reach a ceasefire agreement and to exchange prisoners, CNN reported.
“The movement affirms its readiness to immediately start intensive negotiations, and make serious efforts to reach a final agreement to stop the war, exchange prisoners in an agreed manner, and manage the Gaza Strip by an independent professional body,” Al-Hayya said in a statement.
Edan, described by his mom, Yael Alexander, as a “happy young man with a great sense of humor,” was born in Tel Aviv, Israel. He was raised in Tenafly, New Jersey, and went on to join the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) after graduating high school, Haaretz News reported.
Yael told the outlet that on October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists attacked Israel, Edan was stationed at a “small outpost on the Gaza border.” Around 6:30 a.m., Yael woke up and “immediately sent a message to Edan,” and the two spoke on the phone. Yael added that the phone call was the “last” she heard from Edan:
On Friday, the eve of the Simhat Torah holiday, they spoke on a video chat. “He was cute and handsome, playing with his hair the whole time. He was that people had brought them a holiday meal at the base, and that we going to sleep because he had a guard shift early in the morning,” Yael says.
“I joked and said, ‘We’ll come with an armored vehicle tomorrow, for Shabbat we’ll bring you cholent’” — a slow-simmering stew that Orthodox Jews eat on Shabbat so that they don’t need to cook. “He laughed and said, ‘They won’t let you in, it’s dangerous.’ I went to bed, and at 6:30 in the morning, my father woke me up to go out to the stairwell, because there was a siren.”
She immediately sent a message to Edan and asked if everything was okay. He replied that rockets were flying but he was in a safe place and she shouldn’t worry. When the second siren went off, they went out to the stairwell again, and this time Edan didn’t answer her messages. But he called a few minutes later.
The Alexander family issued a statement describing the news of Edan’s release as “the greatest gift imaginable,” and they expressed gratitude to Trump and Steve Witkoff, a senior adviser and assistant to the president, Northjersey.com reported.
“Today, on Mother’s Day, we received the greatest gift imaginable—news that our beautiful son Edan is returning home after 583 days in captivity in Gaza,” the Alexander family said in a statement. “We express our deepest gratitude to President Trump, Steve Witkoff, and the US administration for their tireless work to make this happen.”
The family added that they are urging Israeli officials and negotiating team to not stop, and they hope Edan’s release “begins negotiations for all 58 remaining hostages, ending this nightmare” for the hostages and their families.
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