TEL AVIV, Oct. 24 (TASS) - Israeli authorities confirmed the release of two Israeli women held hostage in the Gaza Strip.

The Commissioner for Kidnapped and Missing Persons reported that 79-year-old Nurit Cooper and 85-year-old Yocheved Lifshitz were released from Hamas, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Authorities said the two women were abducted from their homes in the Nir Oz kibbutz near the Gaza Strip on October 7. Their husbands were kidnapped along with them and are still being held hostage.

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces reported that Hamas was holding some 222 people hostage. According to the Russian Embassy in Israel, at least two of them are Russian citizens who also hold Israeli citizenship.