A relative of two Hamas hostages revealed Friday on NewsNation that he’d only learned of their release through CNN. This shocked the NewsNation host.
Denver man Ben Raanan’s 17-year-old sister Natalie and stepmom Judith Raanan were kidnapped by Hamas during their terror attack in Israel earlier this month. Then all of a sudden on Friday, the two were released back into Israeli custody.
“The US citizens were handed over at the border with Gaza and are now in the care of the Israel Defense Forces, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said on Friday. They are currently on their way to an Israeli military base to be reunited with family, according to the office for Israel’s prime minister,” CNN reported.
“The Raanans are from Chicago and had been visiting relatives in Nahal Oz, a farming community in southern Israel, when they were taken hostage on October 7, according to their family,” as reported by CNN.
Appearing on NewsNation this Friday, Raanan (Ben) was asked by host Elizabeth Vargas “How did you get the news.”
Watch:
“This happened so quickly. I think CNN called,” he replied, completely shocking Vargas.
“Are you kidding me?! Nobody from the government called you? You heard it from the media?” she said in total shock.
“No, I think the government received the news at almost the exact same time that the news did,” Raanan responded. “I shouldn’t say that, perhaps there was a word to some other members of my family, but as the media was trying to parse out if this was really happening, we were trying to parse out the same thing as well. It happened so quickly.”
Later during the interview, he added, “I can’t imagine what their mental health must be right now. They are not politicians, they are not soldiers. They were not trained for any of this. We are assuming that there’s going to be a long road to recovery, and we’re going to be there with them every step of the way.”
⚠️ Video footage of Hamas releasing two American hostages, Judith Tai Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter, Natalie Raanan yesterday.
The US citizens were handed over at the border with Gaza and are now in the care of the Israel Defense Forces.#GazaHospitalBombing #deprem… pic.twitter.com/holWDpMgRL
— World Chairman (@Worldchairman_1) October 21, 2023
The good news is that they’re actually doing OK.
“I spoke with my daughter earlier today. She sounds very good, she looks very good. She was very happy. And she’s waiting to come home,” Natalie’s father, Uri Raanan, told CNN.
As for his daughter’s mother, he said she has a “little scratch on her hand” but that’s it.
The irony is that even Uri didn’t learn of their release from the government.
“Raanan [Uri] said he first found out about their release when he started receiving photos from Israeli television stations. The Israel Defense Forces called him, saying they were going to meet his daughter and her mother and would call him back. … After the IDF met the mother and daughter, Raanan was called and he was able to speak with his daughter over the phone,” according to CNN.
For the time being, Natalie and Judith remain in the custody and care of the Israel Defense Forces. They’re expected to “be coming back to Chicago sometime early next week,” Raanan (Ben) told CNN.
BREAKING: A photo is released of the freed American hostages.
Mother and daughter Yehudit Tai and Natali Shoshana Raanan were released by Gazan terrorists today.
The Red Cross worked to have them transferred to the boarder.
I think Joe Biden, Antony Blinken and everyone else… pic.twitter.com/yRr0rzgEoC
— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) October 20, 2023
That said, concern is growing over the fate of the remaining hostages.
“It has been two weeks since the Hamas militant group attacked Israel, massacring more than 1,400 people and kidnapping more than 200. While fears are growing for the safety of all of the hostages, held in conditions that would test even the strongest, the worries are especially intense for the most physically vulnerable,” The New York Times reported Saturday.
Among the most vulnerable are kids like 17-year-old Hodaya Perez, who reportedly suffers from myotonic dystrophy and therefore can’t walk and must use a wheelchair.
“She is not built to live in a place like that,” her sister, Yamit, said.
Indeed, the Times notes that she and the other hostages “are trapped in the densely packed Gaza enclave that Israeli warplanes are relentlessly bombing.”
“All around them, food, water and medicine are running out, and fear, rage and hatred are escalating. Everyone inside Gaza, population two million, is facing a humanitarian crisis, and governments around the world have been urging the Israelis to allow in desperately needed aid, which finally began happening on Saturday morning,” according to the Times.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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