Washington, DC [US]: After the release of 13 hostages in Israel, US President Joe Biden has vowed unwavering commitment to ensuring the return of every hostage to their loved ones.
While speaking at a press briefing on Sunday, President Biden said that he would not stop until every hostage is returned to their loved ones.
He also underscored the 13 hostages, including an American, who were released yesterday under a deal brokered and sustained through intensive US diplomacy.
“We will not stop working until every hostage is returned to their loved ones. This has been the product of a lot of hard work and weeks of personal engagement for me and my team,” he said.
The US President further highlighted that he has been in close contact with other West Asia countries.
“We have been in close contact with the leaders of Qatar, Egypt, and Israel, speaking with each one of them repeatedly over the past few weeks,” he added.
He further said that he, his wife, and so “many Americans are praying” that 4-year-old Israeli-American Avigail Idan will be all right after she was released from Hamas captivity earlier on Sunday.
Idan saw her mother killed in front of her in Kibbutz Be’eri during Hamas’s October 7 terror attack and then ran to her father, who shielded her with his body, as terrorists then shot him dead, said Biden.
She then ran to her neighbour’s home, where she, along with those inside, was taken hostage in Gaza.
“What she endured is unthinkable,” Biden emphasised, noting that she celebrated her 4th birthday on Friday in captivity and that he had personally pressed for her release in a recent call with the emir of Qatar.
Biden then expressed hope that the truce will be extended so that more hostages can be released.
“Israel has agreed to extend the four-day truce by an additional day for every extra 10 Israeli hostages released,” he added.
Moreover, US President Biden stated that he has pushed for a pause for weeks in order to get hostages out of Gaza and more humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
Roughly 200 trucks of aid have entered Gaza during the past three days of the truce, he said.
“Innocent children in Gaza are suffering greatly as well because of this war that Hamas has unleashed,” leading to the deaths of thousands of civilians, Biden noted.
He again stressed his plan to advance a two-state solution after the war.
“I get a sense that all the players in the region… are looking for a way to end this so the hostages are all released and (that) Hamas is…no longer in control any portion of Gaza,” Biden said.
After the release of the hostages, hundreds of Israelis were seen cheering in Ofakim as the convoy made its way to Hatzerim Airbase near Beersheba, according to The Times of Israel.
The Israel Defence Forces said that the Red Cross handed them 13 hostages near the border fence in northern Gaza.
One was taken by helicopter to a hospital, and the other 12 were taken in a convoy to the Hatzerim airbase.
‘Will Not Stop Until Every Hostage Returned To Their Loved Ones,’ Says US President Biden
