The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of the Hamas movement, announced today, Friday, that it had released two female prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office confirmed, in a statement, that Hamas had released the two captives, Judith and Natalie Raanan, noting that the two hostages are on their way to a military base in central Israel.

Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, said in a statement, “In response to Qatari efforts, we released two American detainees (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons.” He added: “Let us prove to the American people and the world that the allegations of (US President Joe) Biden and his administration (...) are false allegations that have no basis in truth.”

A spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry said that the release of the two American hostages from Gaza came “after many days of continuous contacts” with all parties, according to Reuters. He added that the Qatari dialogue regarding the release of the hostages will continue with Israel and Hamas, indicating that his country hopes that the dialogue will lead to “the release of all civilian hostages of all nationalities.”

A source told Reuters that the two American prisoners, who were released from Gaza on Friday, are currently with the International Committee of the Red Cross. Israeli media published a photo of the two American captives, identifying them as Judith Raanan (59 years old) and her daughter Natalie Raanan (18 years old).

Hamas and other Palestinian factions captured dozens of Israelis and foreigners during their surprise attack on Israel on October 7. According to the latest Israeli estimates, there are about 203 prisoners in the Gaza Strip, many of whom are dual nationals and foreigners.