Israeli soldier Edan Alexander, the last living American of the Hamas-held hostages in Gaza, has been released, the terror group announced.
There was no immediate confirmation from Israel.
American hostage Edan Alexander has been handed over to the Red Cross, to be transported to Israel after the Trump Administration mediated his release.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) May 12, 2025
It is the first and only time the Red Cross have seen the 21 year old in his 583 days in captivity. pic.twitter.com/1BFXjqXB3l
President Donald Trump earlier Monday said the goodwill gesture may help put an end to the war and return all the living hostages and the remains of the dead to their loved ones.
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The expected release comes just before Trump visits the Middle East this week.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued their own statement, reading in part, “The expected release of Israel Defense Forces soldier Edan Alexander without anything in return will be possible due to the vigorous policy that we have led with the backing of President Trump, and thanks to the military pressure of IDF soldiers in the Gaza Strip.”
/**/Netanyahu’s statement also revealed that Israel didn’t commit to a ceasefire or the release of terrorist prisoners, only to a safe corridor for the freeing of Alexander.
It added the release would come “under fire,” meaning the fighting in Gaza will not stop, while the IDF prepares to expand the war.
Former IDF Spokesman Doron Spielman told CBN News, “I would say that the entire game has changed, Chris. Up until now, over the last 20 months, our goal has been to try to deter Hamas, try to destroy them, but to be extremely careful around the hostages, and what this really resulted in was striking in and pulling back, striking and pulling back. And the problem is, Hamas understood this right away.”
Spielman explained that the new Israeli strategy calls for conquering an area of Gaza and holding the territory.
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“What that means is, the IDF pushes into Rafah, where we have very intense fighting as I’m speaking to you right now, in Rafah (in southern Gaza), with our brigades and with Hamas brigades in Rafah, we will hold that territory. As we move into the middle of Gaza and the Khan Yunis, we will hold that territory to force Hamas to retreat to a smaller and smaller area, where hopefully we can finish them.”
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Reprinted with permission from cbn.com. Copyright © 2025 The Christian Broadcasting Network Inc. All rights reserved.
