✅ Edan Alexander has been held hostage by Hamas since Oct. 7, 2023

✅ Israel and Hamas have agreed to a ceasefire deal

✅ It's not clear yet when hostages will be released


Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal, mediators announced Wednesday, pausing a devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip and raising the possibility of winding down the deadliest and most destructive fighting between the bitter enemies.

The deal, coming after weeks of painstaking negotiations in the Qatari capital, promises the release of 33 of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in phases, the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israel and would allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced in Gaza to return to what remains of their homes. It also would flood badly needed humanitarian aid into a devastated territory.

One of the hostages is Edan Alexander from Tenafly who is now 21 years old. He was a volunteer with the Israel Defense Forces and was kidnapped on Oct. 7, 2023, during the Hamas attack in Israel.

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Edan Alexander
Edan Alexander (Gov. Phil Murphy's office)
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Trump's deadline

As word of an agreement spread on Tuesday, his father, Adi Alexander, told CBS New York that his son would likely not be in the first group of hostages released but did not disclose a reason.

Adi Alexander was hopeful that President-elect Donald Trump's threat that "all hell will break" if an agreement wasn't reached by Inauguration Day acted as an impetus to get a deal done.

“I think all parties should use this Jan. 20 as a deadline and just to pass it over the finish line,” Ali Alexander told NewsNation. “We’ve been so close before six months ago, and it slipped away. I hope this time they will be successful in sealing this deal.”

U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J. 5th District "applauded the tireless work of the negotiators that paved the way for the return of the hostages, a temporary pause in hostilities, and the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to innocent Palestinians being used by Hamas as human shields."

The candidate for governor said that the war is not over until all the hostages, especially the Americans, are released and Israel's security is guaranteed.

"We will not rest until every single hostage, including all the Americans and my constituent, Edan Alexander, is reunited with their families and loved ones," Gottheimer said.

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A screenshot from the video of Edan Alexander released by Hamas (Hamas, BringHomeNow via Instagram)
A screenshot from the video of Edan Alexander released by Hamas (Hamas, BringHomeNow via Instagram)
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Very little has been seen or heard from the 2022 Tenafly High School graduate.  Hamas released a video Thanksgiving weekend of Alexander saying he prays daily to see his family again.

"Please be strong. It is only a matter of time until this nightmare ends," Alexander said.

"Every day here feels like an eternity and the pain from inside grows from day to day," Alexander said. "I don't want to end up dead like my fellow U.S. citizen Hersh."

The haunting words refer to Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, who was also taken hostage. His family confirmed his death in September.

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