Shaun King's Claims About US Hostages Released by Hamas Raise Eyebrows

Speculation on social media erupted on Saturday after civil rights activist Shaun King claimed that he helped free a teenage American girl and her mother who were taken hostage by Hamas and later released by the Palestinian militant group.

At least 200 hostages, including as many as 20 Americans, were captured by Hamas during its attack on Israel on October 7, according to Reuters. Two of these American hostages were Judith Raanan, 59, and her daughter Natalie Raanan, 17, of Evanston, Illinois, until they were released on Friday.

The mother-daughter duo was in Israel to celebrate a relative's birthday and the Jewish holiday season, and were staying in a kibbutz when it was raided by Hamas. The Israel Foreign Ministry said on Friday afternoon that the two hostages were on their way to an army base in central Israel to meet up with their family.

Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said in a statement posted to Telegram on Friday that the two hostages were released on "humanitarian" grounds, while throwing a jab at President Joe Biden.

"In response to Qatari efforts, Al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons, and to prove to the American people and the world that the claims made by Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless," wrote Hamas spokesman Abu Ubaida.

Biden has been a vocal critic of Hamas, calling its attack on Israel a "campaign of pure cruelty" and "the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust." After Hamas' attack, Israel launched its heaviest-ever airstrikes on Gaza. Over 1,400 people in Israel have been killed as of Saturday, the Associated Press reported. While more than 4,000 Palestinians in Gaza have died, the AP said.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) told Newsweek via email on Saturday: "Hamas presents itself to the world as having returned the women they took hostage on humanitarian grounds, while Hamas is in fact a murderous terrorist organization that right now is holding infants, children, women and elderly people hostage in the Gaza Strip, and continuing to commit crimes against humanity.״

Meanwhile in an Instagram post on Friday, King took some credit for the return of Judith and Natalie.

"Hamas has just freed the teenager Natalie Raanan and her mother. I'm grateful. As I said last week, Natalie and her family have been supporters of mine and protested police violence in America alongside us," he said. "I am also thankful for the Qatari government for helping to negotiate this. Dozens of us worked frantically behind the scenes to help make this possible. I spoke to Natalie's family this afternoon and they are anxiously awaiting more updates."

King also posted to Instagram about Natalie on October 10, three days after Hamas' attack and called for his followers' help in bringing her home. "Her dear family has asked that I help them find her and bring her to safety. If she's alive, I can confidentially help broker her return," he said.

However, social media users were skeptical of King's help with the hostages' release.

"Shaun King claiming credit for Hamas freeing a hostage would be hilarious if it wasn't so pathetically grifty. Just kidding, it also really is hilarious," Berny Belvedere, a journalist at UnPopulist, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday.

Journalist Yashar Ali wrote: "It's been a bizarre 48 hours with Shaun King acting as if he was Bill Richardson in this deal." Richardson is a successful international hostage negotiator.

Yuna Leibzon, a U.S. correspondent for an Israeli news outlet, wrote on X that the family of the hostages said, "They have no idea who Sean [sic] King is and they first found out about his existence after their release and reading the posts." In her post, Leibzon added that King "is strongly identified with the support for the Palestinians and constantly puts up clear anti-Israel posts."

King spoke out against the online speculation, telling Newsweek via email on Saturday: "Of course I spoke directly and repeatedly with this family. I have a job, career, and family. I would be throwing everything away to make such a thing up." He added that the family reached out to him and that he spoke to them over phone, text, and direct message.

"I am told that the Israeli government is now pressuring them to say they don't know me," King said. "The family is still in Israel and told me they feel they are in danger."

King also posted a thread on X on Saturday of what he says were messages from Ben Raanan, Natalie's brother. "Ben, a longtime supporter of mine, was the American spokesperson for the family and first reached out to me for help on October 9th," he said. "We texted and talked and messaged non stop for the next 10 days. And behind the scenes I spoke to every person I knew in Gaza to see if she could be freed." Newsweek could not independently verify the correspondence.

A statement that King said was from Ben, from an Instagram account (@raananb), wrote: "Hi everyone, I want to thank all of you for your support in this difficult time. Words can not express the joy that I felt when the unexpected news of Judith and Natalie's release came through. However, I do need to clear up a misunderstanding that has occurred within the media. When this first happened, I reached out to activist Shaun King, as I knew he had many connections within the Palestinian government. While Shaun and I do have slight disagreements politically, we both agree that human life is the most sanctified value on this earth."

Newsweek reached out to Israel's Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Defense via email for comment.

Update 10/22/23, 9:26 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.

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