We reported earlier that two American hostages had been released by Hamas through the intercession of the Qataris. 

Now there's more information about the hostages.

The two are a mother and daughter, Judith Raanan, and her daughter, Natalie Raanan.

An Israeli official tells Fox News that the family of the hostages was notified. They were initially taken from Nahal Oz. Their names are Judith and Natalie Raanan. pic.twitter.com/5nhJSLUinZ

— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) October 20, 2023

Judith and Natalie Raanan are back in Israel after being held hostage by Hamas for nearly two weeks. 201 other known hostages remain inside Gaza, according to Israeli officials. pic.twitter.com/vOeBvK6usN

— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) October 20, 2023

Hamas claimed they were releasing them for "humanitarian reasons," saying they were trying to rebut how the Biden administration has depicted them. A source indicated there might have been a problem with Judith's health. But if you're kidnapping women and children, after targeting civilians, then yes, calling you a terrorist is pretty apt, and releasing the people you kidnapped doesn't change the evil that you've done. 

As research analyst Joe Truzman, who focuses on Palestinian armed groups, observed, they were probably doing this to try to buy time from an IDF assault, not for any "humanitarian reasons." He chastised CNN for that message. 

Stop with this messaging. This a decision made by Hamas' leadership because it favors them and delays a ground assault. They aren't doing it because they grew conscious. You don't kidnap children, murder their parents and burn people, and then become a humanitarian. https://t.co/cKaXhA2IFs

— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) October 20, 2023

They are still holding more than 200 people, so that doesn't make them "humanitarians." Killing thousands of civilians and babies, including 32 Americans, also puts paid to the claim that they have any humanitarian inclinations. 

While Qatar appears to have helped out here in getting these hostages freed, as our Townhall friends observed, the Qataris are also allowing Hamas to have a haven and live in luxury in their country, as we've reported. That's even as Qatar claims to be an "ally" to the U.S. It may explain Qatar's motivation here as well, in trying to help out and stay in our good graces after all this. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he believed that there were still 10 additional Americans who were unaccounted for, as well as about 200 other hostages who were being held in Gaza. 

BLINKEN: "There are still 10 additional Americans who remain unaccounted for ... some of them are being held hostage by Hamas, along with an estimated 200 other hostages held in Gaza" pic.twitter.com/Nc4d2wzXMD

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 20, 2023

As one FBI  hostage team expert Christopher O’Leary observed, they will probably try to negotiate, as getting that many people out might make a military rescue difficult.  "We’ve not seen a case quite like this in the modern era,” he said.

Meanwhile, Joe Biden was off to the beach and more vacation on Friday, and it's not clear what the status of the other hostages is. Let's hope they can get them all out, as the clock seems to be ticking down to the invasion.