At the time it was pretty clear who was talking.
Besides, as a general rule, whatever a hostage says the first few minutes after his or her release, unless it's the location of the captors, is probably not terribly relevant to anything.
I am very glad to hear that. What a contrast in "official statements."
So did the actual hostages praise their military rescuers? If so, I owe them an apology.
Just as reference, I have been here supporting Jill until she was on safe ground for exactly the reasons you state.