From CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Oren Liebermann and Michael Conte
Hamas has released US citizens Judith Tai Raanan and her 17-year-old daughter Natalie Raanan, who were kidnapped during the initial attack against Israel nearly two weeks ago, according to the Office of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Raanans are from the Chicago area and had been visiting relatives in the kibbutz of Nahal Oz in southern Israel when it was attacked by Hamas, according to their family.
They were handed over at the border before making their way to an Israeli military base to be reunited with family, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office.
They are currently in care of the Israel Defense Forces, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said.
Lebanon calls on Israel to declare a 48-hour ceasefire, foreign minister tells CNN
From CNN's Hande Atay Alam
Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib is asking Israel to declare a 48-hour ceasefire, telling CNN "then we will know exactly who is starting what."
Habib told CNN's Poppy Harlow Friday that his country is very worried that the war could spread into the region. "Really we don't want war. The government does not want war. We are dialoguing with the various groups. But it is uncontrollable because it depends all on what happened in Gaza," Bou Habib said.
While Israel prepares for the next stage of the war with Hamas in Gaza, the Iran-backed group Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israeli forces across the border in northern Israel and southern Lebanon.
Earlier on Friday, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Peter Lerner told CNN, "The government of Lebanon, anything that happens from their sovereign territory, they need to — they are responsible for, and they will be held accountable for. This is a sovereign state. It has control over its borders. They have the responsibility to make sure that terrorists like Hezbollah, a terrorist army, do not launch attacks against Israel."
In response to Lerner's comments, Foreign Minister Habib said Israel is "making it worse by their talk."
"Let's call for a ceasefire and see what happens. Instead of threatening," he said.
When Harlow asked Habib if his government has control over Hezbollah, he said, "The people are interrelated here, politically and even blood-wise. So, we cannot hold them from doing some revenge if really the situation in Gaza is going to be worse than what it is now."
"They (Hezbollah) do not want a war. But I mean, you can't control it. It all depends, again, on what happens in Gaza, on the invasion of Israel to Gaza," he added.
Hostage release is "hopefully the start of more to come," diplomatic source says
From CNN's Becky Anderson
The pending release of two American hostages from Gaza Friday is "hopefully the start of more to come," a diplomatic source with knowledge of the arrangements told CNN.
The source confirmed that the hostages were with the Red Cross and indicated no exchanges were part of their release.
Group representing families of Hamas hostages welcomes release of 2 Americans
From CNN’s Lianne Kolirin in London
Representatives for the families of hostages missing in Gaza since the Hamas attacks on October 7 have welcomed Friday's release of an American mother and daughter.
“The families’ headquarters welcomes the release of hostages from Hamas captivity," the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement sent to CNN. "The continued holding of hostages is a war crime. Hundreds of families await the assistance of leaders of Arab states after Hamas' actions shocked the entire world."
“Hamas committed war crimes," the statement continues. "Many leaders in Arab states have tremendous influence over its leaders and must act to immediately release all the hostages and missing held in Gaza."
It went on to call on world leaders and the international community to "exert their full power" to secure the hostages' release.
Hundreds protest in Beirut against Israel's actions in Gaza
From CNN's Ben Wedeman and Sarah El Sirgany in Beirut
Several hundred people protested in Beirut to denounce the Israeli offensive on Gaza. Protesters waved the Palestinian and Lebanese flags, along with the flags of Hezbollah and its political ally, the Amal Movement.
“The only language is that of resistance,” Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Ammar told the crowd in Beirut, adding “the waves of resistance” extend from Yemen to Iraq, in reference to other Iran-backed political and armed groups across the region.
Young protesters burned the American flag, in protest of what they perceived as US support of Israel and its ongoing siege on Gaza following the devastating Hamas terror attacks that killed over 1,000 people in Israel. In the days since the October 7 attacks, Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 4,100 people in Gaza, including hundreds of women and children, according to the health ministry in the territory, which is controlled by Hamas.
Lara Al-Shomi brought her 4-year-old daughter with her to the protests. “I want her to know about the Palestinian cause from a young age,” she told CNN.
Earlier, at a different, smaller demonstration at Martyrs’ Square in Beirut, protester Abdel Rahman told CNN, “We can’t keep silent anymore. This has crossed all boundaries.”
Israel has previously told the US there are American hostages alive, official tells CNN
From CNN's MJ Lee
Israel has previously told the United States government that some Americans held hostage by Hamas are known to be alive, a US official told CNN.
It is not clear whether the Israelis were referring only to the two hostages currently being released or had information on more hostages as well. US officials have not said whether they believe any of the American hostages are dead and have previously noted that all hostages are assumed alive.
Earlier on Friday, the Israeli military said the majority of hostages are alive.
The US government has never said how many Americans it believes are being held hostage, only describing the number as a “handful.”
The US currently is not aware of any “proof of life” videos of American citizens held hostage, akin to the video that Hamas released earlier this week of a 21-year-old French-Israeli woman Mia Schem, the source said. But intelligence shared by Israel had led the US to believe some American hostages are alive.
More context: Ascertaining the condition of Americans taken hostage by Hamas and extracting them from Gaza has been a top priority for President Joe Biden since the outbreak of conflict in Israel. Officials have stressed for days how extraordinarily challenging and complex the intelligence-gathering process surrounding American hostages have been. CNN had previously reported that Qatar is in talks with Hamas about the hostages and playing a key mediating role.
“To those who are living in limbo waiting desperately to learn the fate of loved ones, especially to families of the hostages: You're not alone. We're working with partners throughout the region, pursuing every avenue to bring home those who are being held captive by Hamas,” Biden said in Tel Aviv this week. “I can't speak publicly about all the details, but let me assure you: For me as the American president, there is no higher priority than the release and safe return of all these hostages.”
2 American hostages being released by Hamas, sources say
From CNN's Alex Marquardt and Kaitlan Collins
Two American hostages, a mother and her daughter, are being released by Hamas, according to a person familiar with the negotiations and a diplomatic source.
The two have been handed over to the Red Cross and are “on their way out,” the source familiar with negotiations said. They are being released on “humanitarian grounds” because the mother is in poor health, the same source said.
It is unclear whether they will leave Gaza into Egypt or Israel.
It is the result of the negotiations between Qatar and Hamas that started after Hamas abducted around 200 people from Israel on October 7.
"In response to Qatari efforts, Al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons, and to prove to the American people and the world that the claims made by Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless," Hamas spokesperson Abu Obaida said in a statement.
The White House has not commented. The Israeli prime minister’s office has not commented. CNN has reached out to the Red Cross.
Biden says trucks carrying humanitarian aid should enter Gaza "within the next 24-48 hours"
From CNN's Donald Judd
US President Joe Biden told reporters at the White House Friday that trucks carrying much-needed humanitarian aid should enter Gaza “within the next 24-48 hours,” after delays prevented the convoy from delivering supplies via the critical Rafah crossing from Egypt to Gaza as scheduled Friday.
Biden said he "got a commitment from the Israelis and the president of Egypt that the crossing would be opened."
"The highway had to be repaved because it was in very bad shape, and I believe that, within the next 24-48 hours, the first 20 trucks will come across with aid," the US leader continued.
Some background: CNN has reported throughout the week that supplies remain in limbo at the crossing as concerns rise about the rapidly worsening conditions for the population stuck in the besieged enclave.
The entire population of Gaza has been cut off from supplies of electricity, food, fuel and water for over a week under a “complete siege” ordered by Israel in the wake of Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks.
The first convoy carrying humanitarian supplies from Egypt won't cross until Saturday at the earliest, US sources told CNN, as the World Health Organization warned that much more aid than what has been agreed upon would be required. In a news conference at the Rafah crossing Friday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the critical importance of delivering aid to the Gaza Strip, saying the vehicles carrying supplies "are not just trucks — they are a lifeline."
Palestinian prime minister tells CNN why he won't condemn deadly October 7 Hamas attack
From CNN's Becky Anderson and Zeena Saifi in Ramallah
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh told CNN that he won't condemn the Hamas attack that killed over 1,000 people on October 7, saying, "support of Israel blindly is a license for killing."
"I hope that (the) United States does not go into that direction," he added.
In a sit-down interview in Ramallah in the West Bank, Shytayyeh told CNN's Becky Anderson why he was unwilling to condemn the attacks:
"The Palestinian story does not start on October 7," Shtayyeh said. "The Palestinian catastrophe has been there for 75 years, and we have been crying loud, and we have been shouting loud and clear (that) we need a solution."
He went on to say that "condemnation should be (for the) killing of every civilian, every human being that does not deserve to die. We should condemn that."
Shtayyeh claimed that the sentiment of the Israeli people is one of revenge.
"Israel is not under existential threat, and I think that the White House, (President Joe Biden) should call for the parties to sit down and work together (for) a peaceful solution," he said.
Visits by world leaders to Tel Aviv in support of Israel — a reference in part to Biden's visit Thursday and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visits in the last week, among others — have "given the greenest of the green light for Israel to continue its attack on Gaza," Shtayyeh said.
International support should be for peace, not aggression, he said.
The prime minister called on a collective international effort led by the United Nations Security Council to end the war.
"What you need is a collective international effort on the side of the members of the Security Council to take the lead in ending the conflict and finding a solution," he said.