The al-Qasam Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamist group Hamas, announced this Monday the release of two Israeli women hostages, elderly women aged 85 and 80, among the at least 220 captives in Gaza after mediation by Egypt and Qatar.

“We freed two captives, Nurit Yitzhak and Yochved Lifshitz,” said the spokesman for Hamas's military wing, Abu Obeida, in a statement, who assured that their release occurs “for compelling and satisfactory humanitarian reasons,” after mediation by Egypt. and Qatar, usual mediators between Hamas and the Israeli authorities.

Obeida added that it was decided to release the two women despite the fact that Israel “has refused since last Friday to accept their receipt,” and accused it of “continuing to neglect” the people who are captives of the Palestinian militias in the Strip, among them which there are more elderly and children, as well as both Israelis and foreign citizens.

According to the Ynet website, Israel confirmed the release of the two hostages, who have been transferred to Egypt after 17 days of captivity, after being captured on October 7, when Hamas launched the attack against Israel that included a ground incursion and It broke out the war.

Both were residents of Kibbutz Nir Oz, a community adjacent to Gaza that was one of the most affected by the Hamas offensive.. Lifshitz is 85 years old, and Yitzhak – also identified as Nurit Cooper by local media – is 80, according to the Israeli press, which assured that the Israeli Government did not take part in the process for their release.

On the other hand, the husbands of the two elderly women, also elderly, remain captive in Gaza. The International Committee of the Red Cross would have had an important role in the release of both hostages, and its team took part in their transfer from Gaza to Egypt through the Rafah crossing.

Hamas already offered to release these same two captives on Sunday, “without asking for anything in return,” when it allegedly accused Israel of rejecting the offer, an assertion rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Today, the spokesman for its armed militias also accused Israel of having committed “more than eight violations of the procedures that were agreed” with the mediators for the handover of hostages.

With Monday's release, four of the at least 222 captured by Palestinian militants have already left Gaza, after Hamas released two US women on Friday citing “humanitarian reasons.”

The two freed Americans were a mother and daughter who were visiting Israel when they were captured.