Two Americans to be released from Gaza in first phase of ceasefire deal
Two Americans, Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen, are expected to be released as part of the first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal that emerged Wednesday after being held for 15-months by Hamas since the start of the war in Gaza, according to a senior administration official.
The deal includes the release or older males and those who were wounded on Oct. 7, of which Seigel and Dekel-Chen apply. The first phase in total includes the release of hostages that are women, elderly males and the sick and wounded.
The third American being held by Hamas, Edan Alexander, is a 21-year-old American-Israeli who served in the IDF. Uniform soldiers are part of the second phase of the deal. The official said that they spoke with Alexander’s father last night and are committed to getting Edan out.
“We will see — and I don’t want to say until we actually see them — but Keith Siegel and Sagui Dekel-Chen will come out in the first day and Edan will come out of Gaza, no doubt about it,” the official said.
The administration is in regular contact with the families of the Americans being held and are “committed” to getting them all out, whether they are living or not, according to the official.
Wednesday’s deal largely aligns with a multiphase proposal President Biden first put forward in late May, which included the release of American hostages, remains of hostages who were killed and a surge in humanitarian assistance during the first phase.
Biden had announced that Americans would be released in the initial six-week phase earlier on Wednesday.
“I’m proud to say Americans will be part of that hostage release in phase one as well, and the vice president and I cannot wait to welcome them home,” the president said.
The official told reporters that the administration didn’t have full confidence that a deal would come together until “late this afternoon” in the Middle East, saying that Hamas tried to bring up more issues this morning and the U.S. “held the line on that.”
The official also gave credit to President-elect Trump’s team for their help in the hostage deal negotiations, saying that Biden’s Mideast negotiator Brett McGurk and Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff were both pivotal in the “last 96 hours.”
“Steve and Brett have been talking regularly about the process, Brett has been keeping Steve fully informed,” the official said.
When asked if the hostage deal would have happened if Trump wasn’t elected in November, noting that the first group of hostages will be released the day before Trump’s swearing in, officials said “any negotiation, any breakthrough diplomacy, sometimes we just need a deadline.”
Trump on Wednesday claimed the credit for himself, saying a deal would not have happened without his victory in November. Meanwhile, Biden replied, “Is that a joke?” when asked by a reporter whether he or Trump would get credit for the deal.
Laura Kelly contributed to this report.