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Hamas frees last American held in Gaza in deal that largely circumvents Israel

A photo of Edan Alexander is seen at his parents’ home in Tenafly, N.J., Jan. 24, 2024. Hamas, the Palestinian armed group, said on Sunday night that it would free Edan Alexander, the last living American citizen held captive in Gaza, just days before President Trump is expected to arrive in the region for the first major foreign tour of his second term.  (New York Times)
Patrick Kingsley, Johnatan Reiss and Adam Rasgon New York Times

Hamas released Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage it held in the Gaza Strip, on Monday evening after mediators brokered a deal between the group and the United States that largely circumvented the Israeli government.

Alexander’s release came on the eve of a visit by President Donald Trump to the Middle East, and was portrayed by Hamas officials as an attempt to secure U.S. support for a wider deal to end the war.

Alexander, 21, was among roughly 250 people seized and taken to Gaza during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that ignited the war in Gaza. A dual Israeli American national serving in the Israeli army, he was captured from a military post that morning. He grew up in New Jersey and moved to Israel after high school to join the military.

In images and video that the Israeli authorities shared Monday following his release, Alexander, looking pale but smiling, enthusiastically greeted his family with hugs and exclamations of joy. According to reports in Israeli news media, the released captive said that he had been held in a cage in a Hamas underground tunnel with his hands and feet bound and ate little.

Unlike most other hostages, Alexander was released without a formally announced ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, highlighting the failure of efforts to secure a broader truce between the two sides. Hamas still holds at least 20 living hostages — along with about 40 dead bodies, including those of several Americans — but it is reluctant to release more of them unless Israel agrees to hold negotiations to end the war. Israel wants the right to continue the war after any future truce, leading to an impasse in the talks.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Monday that Alexander’s release showed the benefits of placing Hamas under greater military pressure.

But critics of Netanyahu’s strategy have said Alexander’s release instead highlighted the failure of such an approach, since he was being released mainly because of U.S. pressure rather than Israeli action. Growing numbers of Israelis support securing a deal to free all hostages, even if such a truce would require Netanyahu to compromise, end the war, and allow Hamas to survive. Netanyahu announced Monday that he would send a delegation to join negotiations for a temporary ceasefire, disappointing those who want him to agree to a permanent truce.

This article originally appeared in the New York Times.