A heartwarming photo released by Israeli officials on Friday shows the American mom and daughter who were held hostage by Hamas for two weeks safe in the hands of soldiers following their release.
Judith Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter, Natalie, appear exhausted in the photo, as they walk into Israel, flanked by the soldiers. Hamas finally released the Illinois natives on Friday, claiming it was doing so for “humanitarian reasons.”
The mom and daughter were captured by Hamas during its Oct. 7 incursion into Southern Israel. They remained in Hamas’ custody for two weeks until a deal—negotiated between Israel, Qatar, the U.S., and Hamas—was reached on Friday.
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A spokesperson for the prime minister’s office said Israeli authorities received the mom and daughter—who live in Evanston, Illinois—at Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip. In the photo, Natalie wears jeans and a grey zip-up jacket, while her mom appears to be wearing a blue dress and brown pants.
“At this moment they are on their way to a meeting point at a military base in the center of the country, where their family members are waiting for them,” the spokesperson said in a statement around 9:30 p.m. local time.
President Joe Biden confirmed the Raanans’ release in a statement, saying they “endured a terrible ordeal these past 14 days.”
“I am overjoyed that they will soon be reunited with their family, who has been wracked with fear,” the statement said. “These individuals and their family will have the full support of the United States government as they recover and heal.”
A source told the The Jerusalem Post that Judith, 59, is in “poor health.” Natalie, who graduated high school this spring, turns 18 next week, according to her brother Ben Raanan.
In an interview Friday night, Natalie’s father, Uri Raanan, told News Nation, “They’re doing very well. I spoke with Natalie, she sounds very, very happy—very, very good. She sounds like herself.” The overjoyed father said that he was in “the dark for the last couple of weeks” but is now holding out hope that his daughter might make it home in time for her birthday.
Uri Raanan praised President Biden in the interview, saying he wanted to “thank him for his support for his effort to release Natalie and Judith and hopefully to release the rest of the hostages.”
He added: “I was waiting for this day for two weeks and this is the best day of my life.”
The women had been staying near the Gaza border at a kibbutz, where they’d traveled to celebrate Judith’s mother’s 85th birthday. Loved ones have waited in agony ever since—raising nearly $10,000 with a GoFundMe fundraiser.
Hamas claimed in a statement that it had cut the duo loose for “humanitarian reasons” in response to “Qatari efforts.” They did not specify what role Qatar played in the hostage release.
In a statement, Al-Qassam said the release was also to “prove to the American people and the world that the allegations of Biden and his fascist administration are false allegations that have no basis in truth.”
The Israeli newspaper Haaertz reported that the two women were handed over to the Red Cross to coordinate their return to Israel.
Hamas is believed to have kidnapped at least 203 people from Israel, including women, children, and the elderly—largely from Israeli communities near the Gaza border. Recordings of some hostages have been released by Hamas, but the status of a majority of those kidnapped remains unknown.
“Jill and I have been holding close in our hearts all the families of unaccounted for Americans,” Biden said in his statement. “And, as I told those families when I spoke with them last week—we will not stop until we get their loved ones home.”
Raanan family members told the Chicago Sun-Times earlier this month that they lost all contact with Judith and Natalie around noon on Oct. 7. They’d reportedly been staying in Nahal Oz, a kibbutz about 1.5 miles from the Gaza border, where Hamas’ surprise attack quickly overran Israeli defenses.
They’d arrived in Israel in early September to celebrate the High Holidays with loved ones, family told the Sun-Times.
Judith and Natalie Raanan smile together.
GoFundMeUri Raanan, Natalie’s father, told The Daily Beast that he received confirmation his daughter and ex-wife were being held hostage on Oct. 13, a week before their release.
In an online fundraiser, he wrote: “My daughter and ex-wife got captured by Hamas and taken to Gaza last October 7th. I know they are alive. Please help us.”
As word spread of the Raanans reaching safety, loved ones from Illinois began celebrating.
“No words to describe our excitement, our gratitude to Hashem and our continued hope for all of Israel!” wrote Yehudis Hecht, the wife of the Evanston Rabbi Meir Hecht, in a Facebook post.
Rabbi Dove Hillel Klein, of the Tannenbaum Chabad House, told WGN News that Friday was a “joyous day.”
“To bring home to America, to Chicago, to Evanston, two wonderful, amazing [women], Judith and her daughter, Natalie, this is an infinite miracle,” he said.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker wrote that he’s “incredibly relieved” Natalie and Judith are coming home.
“I cannot wait to welcome them back home after demonstrating immense strength and bravery in the face of unthinkable terror,” he said.
