VFI News Israeli-American Hostage Edan Alexander to Be Released After Negotiations with the US

Israeli-American Hostage Edan Alexander to Be Released After Negotiations with the US . . .

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Hamas had claimed to have lost contact with the group holding Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander hostage following a strike on their location but is now expected to announce the release of Alexander, sources involved in negotiations told Israeli media on Sunday, May 11. 

Estimates say the release could take place in the coming 48 hours, the sources said. Hamas said it might release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander on Monday, Arabic media reported, citing Gazan sources knowledgeable on the matter. Alexander’s parents confirmed the development to Israeli media.   

"As an Israeli citizen and soldier, as well as a US citizen, both Israel and the United States are committed to his safety and security and to ensuring his safe return home, along with Israel's commitment to securing the return of the other 58 hostages without delay," the family added in a later statement through the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. No hostage should be left behind." 

The Prime Minister's Office said that the US informed Israel of Hamas's intention to release Alexander, an American citizen, as a gesture to the Americans, "without any compensation or conditions."

"The United States has informed Israel that this move is expected to lead to negotiations for the release of hostages under the original Witkoff framework, which Israel has already accepted," the PMO noted. (JPost/VFI News)

“Our Heavenly Father, we thank You for securing the release of Edan Alexander. We are extremely grateful to you, the American president, and everyone else who worked hard for his freedom. We pray that the release will proceed according to plan and that this will spark more negotiations and the release of additional hostages. We pray in Yeshua's Name that You will eventually free all the hostages and guard their hearts, bodies and minds at all times.”

The Hamas terrorist organization continues to construct new tunnels and expand existing ones within the Gaza Strip, despite ongoing Israeli military operations. 

According to a Sunday, May 11, report, the IDF has so far destroyed only about 25% of Hamas's known tunnel infrastructure. Military officials have expressed concern over Hamas's persistent efforts to rebuild and extend its tunnel network, which the group uses to evade direct confrontation with IDF forces. 

Hamas operatives reportedly utilize these tunnels to plant explosives and launch anti-tank missiles at Israeli troops before retreating underground.

In a separate development, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir met with recently released hostages, including Romi Gonen, Liri Albag, Sasha Trufanov, and Omer Shem Tov. The former captives recounted hearing explosions, tank movements, and Hebrew communications from IDF forces while they were held underground.

Zamir emphasized the military's commitment to the safe return of all hostages and the dismantling of Hamas's operational capabilities. "The return of the hostages and ensuring their safety remain our top priorities," he stated. 

"We will continue to take all necessary actions to achieve our war objectives—bringing all hostages home and defeating the Hamas terrorist organization." (INN/VFI News) 

“Dear Lord, we pray fervently for the full dismantlement of Hamas as well as all its proxies. You are opposed to the wicked and we pray that You soften the hearts of those who have enough humility to acknowledge You and that You deliver the criminals to Your justice. We pray that no additional tunnels be built and the ones which are already there be destroyed. In Yeshua's Name we pray.”

Iran and the United States wrapped up nuclear talks in Oman on Sunday, May 11, with no apparent breakthrough and a public standoff over enrichment, but with both sides confirming plans for future negotiations.

It was the fourth round of the talks that began a month ago, marking the highest-level contact between the two foes since Washington withdrew in 2018 from a landmark nuclear deal during President Donald Trump’s first term.

Both sides had reported progress in the previous three rounds, and on Sunday, Iran said the meeting was “difficult but useful,” while a senior US official said Washington was “encouraged.”

In a post on X, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the talks could help “better understand each other’s positions and to find reasonable and realistic ways to address the differences.” Baqaei earlier said negotiators would push for relief from US sanctions. 

The US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Washington was “encouraged by today’s outcome and look(s) forward to our next meeting, which will happen in the near future,” without specifying when. (TOI/VFI News) 

“The wise in heart will receive commands, but a prating fool will fall.” - Proverbs 10:8

US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, has said the Islamic Republic’s uranium enrichment facilities “have to be dismantled” for Washington to take it at its word that it does not want nuclear arms.

“They cannot have centrifuges. They have to downblend all of their fuel that they have there and send it to a far-away place,” Witkoff said in an interview with a right-wing American news outlet on Thursday, May 8. “An enrichment program can never exist in the state of Iran ever again. That’s our red line.” 

“I just believe they have no choice” but to accept the position of US President Donald Trump against enrichment, said Witkoff. “Obviously, they can say no, and they can test President Trump, but I think that would be an unwise thing to do.” Speaking to the American news outlet, Witkoff said Iran would have to dismantle its three known enrichment facilities in Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan. 

On the other hand, he said, the Iranians could hold onto their nuclear reactor in Bushehr, where “they have no ability to enrich, they have no ability to have centrifuges there, they can only use that facility for civilian purposes — making electricity and things of that sort of civilian purposes. (TOI/VFI News) 

“Dear God, we pray for the Iranian regime to stop all nuclear activity that is not intended for civilian use. We pray in Yeshua's Name that you cause it to agree fully to the US terms and focus on improving the lives of its own citizens.”

Rosian Zerner was born in 1935 in Lithuania. When Germany invaded Lithuania in 1941, Rosian and her family were confined to the Kovno Ghetto. When she was six years old, her parents helped her escape through a hole they had dug under the ghetto fence, where she was met by her father's secretary. She was hidden by several rescuers over the next three years before being liberated by the Soviet troops in 1944.

An Israeli defense source reportedly emphasized on Friday, May 9, that Israel plans to continue its attacks against the Houthis in Yemen.

"We will continue to strike the Houthis. We face no restrictions—the agreement between the Houthis and the Americans does not bind us—and they will pay," the source said.

The comments came after Houthi rebels once again fired a missile towards Israel on Friday afternoon. The missile was intercepted successfully by the American THAAD system. Israeli officials cited in the report added that after the United States halted its strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, Israel intends to escalate its attacks in Yemen. 

The officials added that broader and more intense strikes are expected against additional targets. Furthermore, according to the report, Israel is considering targeting Iranian assets as well. 

The sources stated that Iran will not emerge unscathed. One of Israel’s objectives is to destroy as many launchers as possible, expand attacks on infrastructure facilities and remaining ports, and completely demolish them. (INN/VFI News)  

“The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.” - Psalm 11:5

International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan allegedly forced sexual intercourse upon a member of staff on multiple occasions, American media said Saturday, May 10, in a report that questioned whether the allegations may have prompted his decision to issue arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant.

The report said that at the time — weeks after the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught — Khan was coming under increasing pressure to take action over Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, and that he had been lashing out at his team.

A Malaysian lawyer in her 30s reportedly asked to meet with Kahn to ask him to change the manner in which he interacted with the staff. In response, he summoned her to his suite in the Millennium Hilton Hotel next to the UN headquarters in New York.

According to the report, the woman testified to UN officials that Khan started to touch her in a sexual manner, something that she said had been occurring for several months. “She said she attempted to leave the room several times, but he took her hand and eventually pulled her to the bed. Then he … forced sexual intercourse, according to the testimony,” the report said.

Khan, through his lawyers, told the newspaper that it is “categorically untrue that he has engaged in sexual misconduct of any kind.” The newspaper further said that two and a half weeks after Khan learned of the allegations, on May 20, 2024, he announced his intention to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant over the war in Gaza, in addition to Hamas leaders. (TOI/VFI News)

“Dear Lord, we pray for the lawyer who has reportedly faced continual sexual abuse at the hands of Karim Khan. We pray that You heal her, engulf her in Your love, erase all horrifying memories from her mind, and fully restore her. We also pray in Yeshua's Name that You remove Khan from his position and that his decision to arrest Israeli officials will be annulled. Please keep wicked people from entering positions of authority nor decide about the future of other nations.”

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee says Israelis should not feel snubbed by US President Donald Trump’s decision to skip Israel in his visit to the Middle East, which includes stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE.

“His first trip is about economic opportunity. That’s where his focus is,” Huckabee said in an interview with a Hebrew news network.

“What he’s doing is not because he’s snubbing Israel. There are 200 nations in the world, almost, so there are a lot of them he hasn’t gone to yet, a lot of them he isn’t going to right away — he’s spent more time with the prime minister of Israel than he has with any other world leader. I think that says a lot.”

“I would just say to people, ‘relax, calm down, Donald Trump loves you, there’s no doubt about that, he’s got your back,'” the ambassador said. “He is the same Donald Trump that, for four years as president, did more for Israel than any other American president.”

He further said that the US believes “Israel has the right to do what it has to do,” in regards to Iran, and that Trump knows “nobody can tell Israel what to do. He added, however, that the White House would definitely have “recommendations” in this regard. (TOI/VFI News)

“A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. - Proverbs 18:24

Bridget Phillipson, the UK's Education Secretary, has called for more education surrounding the Holocaust following a rise in antisemitic incidents in schools and universities, in a conversation with British media on Saturday, May 10.

Phillipson warned that antisemitism among schoolchildren has become a “national emergency” in the UK and believes that it must be tackled through compulsory lessons on the Holocaust.

“We must confront an alarming truth - the lessons of history are being forgotten by a growing number of our young people,” she said, during the same week that the UK marked the 80th anniversary of VE Day.

“These lessons are needed now more than ever. The horrific surge in antisemitism among schoolchildren since October 7 is not merely concerning - it is a national emergency,” Phillipson stated.

She added, “That is why every child in every school across England will learn about the Holocaust, about antisemitism, and about how easily democracy can fracture when hatred goes unchallenged.” (JPost/VFI News)

The suggestions, opinions, and scripture references made by VFI News writers and editors are based on the best information received.

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