Judith Raanan, who became the first hostage to be freed from Hamas captivity, held talks Monday with President-elect Donald Trump in Florida. During their meeting, Raanan presented Trump with her own artwork and recounted the traumatic moments of her capture and subsequent captivity in Gaza.
In her appeal to Trump, Raanan expressed her trust in him and requested his full support in securing the return of all hostages, both the living who need rehabilitation and those who did not survive, so they may be laid to rest in their homeland.
Judith and her daughter Natalie, who hold dual American-Israeli citizenship, were taken captive from their family residence in Nahal Oz during Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack and were released on Oct. 20, 2023. Within seven minutes of crossing back into Israeli territory, US President Joe Biden personally called Judith to congratulate her on reuniting with her family. Judith's response was resolute: "The work has just begun, we must bring everyone home immediately."
