NANTUCKET, Mass. — President Joe Biden praised the release of the first group of hostages held captive by Hamas and said the U.S. is expecting more to be freed as part of a deal that paused fighting for the next four days.
Speaking from Nantucket, Massachusetts where he is spending the Thanksgiving holiday, the President said the deal is going well but cautioned that it is only the beginning.
“It’s only a start but so far it’s gone well,” Biden said.
“Today we can also be thankful for families being reunited with loved ones who have been held hostage for nearly 50 days,” he added.
Biden credited “extensive U.S. diplomacy” and thanked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu along with Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi for their cooperation.
Thirteen Israeli hostages were released to the Red Cross earlier in the day. An Israel Defense Forces source also confirmed they were transferred to Egypt. The IDF said in a statement that the hostages “underwent an initial medical assessment inside Israeli territory.”
Hamas also freed 10 Thai nationals and one Filipino who worked in the Israeli villages and were kidnapped on Oct. 7, the Qatar Foreign Ministry said.
Biden said he would know within the next hour who would be among the second wave of hostages released.
“We expect more hostages to be released tomorrow, and more the day after and more the day after that,” Biden said. “Over the next few days, we expect that dozens of hostages will be returned to their families.”
“We also will not stop until we get these hostages brought home and answer to their whereabouts,” he added, acknowledging the two American women and a 4-year-old girl who were among the hostages.
Biden suggested it is possible that the pause in fighting could extended, telling reporters, “I think the chances are real.”
When asked by reporters if he trusted Hamas to keep their end of the deal, Biden offered a bleak assessment of Hamas’ objectives.
“I don’t trust Hamas to do anything right. I only trust Hamas to respond to pressure,” he said, before adding that Hamas “does not give a damn” about innocent Palestinian civilians.
Biden reiterated the need for a two-state solution in order to bring peace to the region.
“As we look to the future, we have to end this cycle of violence in the Middle East. We need to renew our resolve to pursue this two-state solution where Israelis and Palestinians can one day live side by side in a two states solution with an equal measure of freedom and dignity, two states for two people and it’s more important now than ever,” he said.
