The US hostages cell in Israel assisted in the effort to rescue the four hostages freed from Hamas captivity on Saturday, an American official told Walla’s Barak Ravid.
Additionally, the New York Times reported that the US had provided Israel with intelligence on the hostages prior to the operation.
BREAKING: A U.S. official told me that the U.S. hostages cell in Israel supported the effort to rescue the four hostages https://t.co/o4P7ECMOiC
— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) June 8, 2024
According to the Times, American and British intelligence collection and analysis teams have been operating in Israel to assist Israeli intelligence throughout the course of the war.
America’s ‘complicity’
Hamas subsequently responded to the reports, slamming Washington for participating in Israel’s effort to recover the hostages.
“[The report] proves once again the complicit role of the American administration and its full participation in the war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas stated.
“We call on our Arab and Islamic peoples, and the free people of the world, to exert more pressure and escalate the movement denouncing the aggression and genocide in Gaza,” the Islamist terror organization added.
US President Joe Biden’s administration has yet to comment on any involvement it may have had in Israel’s hostage rescue operation.
President Biden did, however, welcome the return of the four hostages during a news conference with French President Emmanuel Macon on Saturday, adding that the US was working for the release of the hostages still in captivity.
“We won’t stop working until all the hostages come home and a ceasefire is reached,” Biden said.
Later, US National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, put out a statement on the Israeli rescue operation affirming that the US was involved in efforts to secure the release of the hostages.
“The United States is supporting all efforts to release the hostages still held by Hamas, including American citizens,” Sullivan wrote. “This includes through ongoing negotiations or other means.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
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