A woman looks at portraits of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza since October 2023, including one with the face of Israeli-American captive Edan Alexander (C), at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv on May 12, 2025. (Credit: Menahem Kahana.)
Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced Monday that they would release the Israeli-US hostage Edan Alexander later today, who has been held in Gaza since the bloody attacks of Oct. 7, 2023.
"The al-Qassam Brigades have decided to release the Zionist soldier of American nationality, Edan Alexander, who is currently detained. The release will take place today, Monday, May 12, 2025," said their spokesperson, Abu Obeida, in a message on Telegram.
There will be no public event accompanying it, as has been the case with previous releases, according to a source close to Hamas.
Mediators have informed Hamas, according to a source within the movement, that Israel would observe a pause in the fighting in Gaza to allow for the hostage's release. "Hamas has been informed that at exactly 09:30 (06:30 GMT), Israel began to suspend its reconnaissance flights, drones, and combat planes, as well as its military operations, to create a secure corridor for the transfer and handover of Edan Alexander," this source told AFP.
The Families Forum, the largest association of relatives of hostages in Israel, called Monday for a rally at the Hostages’ Square in Tel Aviv, where protesters have been demanding the return of captives for nearly 600 days. These announcements come on the eve of the start of U.S. President Donald Trump's tour in the Middle East, expected from Tuesday to Friday in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, one of the mediators between Israel and Hamas at war in Gaza for over a year and a half.
Alexander, the only living hostage with American nationality still detained in Gaza, was kidnapped while serving in southern Israel during the massacre on Oct. 7, 2023. The unprecedented attack by Hamas resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data. Of the 251 people kidnapped in Israel that day, 58 are still held in Gaza, with 34 declared dead by the Israeli army.
Israeli reprisals have resulted in at least 52,829 deaths in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to data published Sunday by the Hamas Health Ministry, deemed reliable by the U.N.