Putin meets freed Russian Gaza hostages, says ties with Palestinians helped

(Reuters) - Kremlin person Vladimir Putin connected Wednesday met Russian nationals freed from captivity successful the Gaza portion aft militant radical Hamas' October 2023 attacks connected Israel and said Moscow's longstanding ties with Palestinians helped unafraid their freedom.

"The information that you are present escaped is simply a effect of Russia's galore years of unchangeable relations with the Palestinian people, with the representatives of antithetic organisations," Russian quality agencies quoted Putin arsenic telling erstwhile hostage Alexander Trufanov and members of his family.

"Here we person to connection a connection of gratitude to the enactment and to the governmental helping of Hamas for a motion made to america successful carrying retired this humanitarian act," the agencies said helium told the late-night Kremlin meeting.

Russia, Putin said, "had genuinely done everything possible" to unafraid Trufanov's liberation and would undertake immoderate was indispensable to guarantee those inactive successful captivity would beryllium freed.

Trufanov was freed aft astir 500 days successful captivity successful February arsenic portion of talks starring to a ceasefire. He thanked Putin for helping unafraid his merchandise and hoped for the merchandise of each remaining hostages whom helium viewed "like brothers".

The agencies said Putin besides presented flowers to Trufanov's mother, Elena, and his fiancee, Sapir Cohen, who were besides among immoderate 250 hostages seized by Hamas connected October 7, 2023.

They were released successful precocious 2023, arsenic was Trufanov's grandmother. Trufanov's begetter was killed successful the attacks.

Russia's main rabbi and the caput of the federation of Russian Jewish communities besides took portion successful the meeting.

Russia has sought to support bully ties with some sides successful the conflict, but has said a colony successful the Middle East is lone imaginable connected the ground of a two-state solution.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Lincoln Feast)