The release of a 4-year-old American girl by Hamas followed weeks of behind-the-scenes efforts by the Biden administration to secure her safety through Qatari and Egyptian intermediaries.
A US official who detailed those efforts after the release of Abigail Idan to Israel said US attention will now turn to remaining hostages. President Joe Biden received an update on their possible status earlier Sunday, the official said.
Abigail was among 17 Hamas captives released Sunday in the latest swap, but future efforts could be more complicated. US officials are unable to confirm the whereabouts of the 10 remaining US citizens or permanent residents that are unaccounted for — or even whether they’re still alive.
Abigail, also spelled Avigail in Hebrew, is the daughter of a news photographer who documented the early moments of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel before being killed by militants.
The then 3-year-old came to the attention of US officials early in the crisis. Through eyewitnesses, officials learned that her mother was murdered in front of her, and when her father tried to protect Abigail, he was killed, too. Abigail fled to a neighbor’s house, where she was kidnapped along with the neighboring family and taken into northern Gaza.
Read more: Israel, Hamas Look to Extend Truce After More Hostages Are Freed
Biden raised Abigail’s case in almost all of his phone calls with leaders in the region, including the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the official said. The emir was instrumental in the October release of two Illinois residents — Judith Raanan and her daughter, Natalie — and that case provided the template for negotiations for Abigail’s release, the official said.
Qatar maintains contact with Hamas, which has an office in Doha and is considered a terrorist group by the US and the European Union. Qatar’s prime minister deflected questions about the arrangement Sunday, saying Qatar had no knowledge of the whereabouts of Hamas military leaders and dealt only with its political wing.
“As long as this is something useful – and also, right now, we are in the middle of the negotiation – we will always keep the communication open with everyone,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told CBS’s Face the Nation.
Hostage List
Abigail’s name was included on a list of women and children who could be released by Hamas. But as late as Sunday morning in Washington, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan was unwilling to confirm that she would be released in case the deal collapsed.
At the same time, US officials were tracking her transfer to the International Committee of the Red Cross and out of Gaza and into Israel throughout the morning. The convoy was diverted from its planned route through Rafah, a crossing on the border of Gaza and Egypt, to a direct route into Israel because another hostage – an 85-year-old Israeli woman – required urgent medical care and a helicopter evacuation. Biden spoke twice by phone with senior officials as the transfer unfolded, the official said.
Shortly before noon Sunday, Biden emerged in Nantucket, the Massachusetts island where he spent the Thanksgiving holiday with his family, to announce Abigail’s release.
“One of our fellow Americans, a little girl named Abigail turned four years old — she spent her birthday, that birthday, and at least 50 days before that held hostage by Hamas,” Biden said. “She’s free and she’s in Israel now.”
“Thank God she’s home,” he said. “I just can’t imagine the enjoyment. I wish I were there to hold her.”
Also released Sunday was Aviva Siegel, the wife of Keith Siegel, a North Carolina native who was also taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7. The White House said it would work to ensure his release after Hamas frees all the remaining women and children.