Latest news with #HostagesFamiliesForum
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Israeli military recovers bodies of 2 Victims of Oct. 7 Attack
The couple had left their kibbutz for a walk early on Oct. 7, 2023, and were caught up in the attack. Weinstein Haggai contacted emergency services for help, according to a recording published by the Israeli news website Ynet. In the call, she said she believed her husband was dead and that she had been struck in the face. She pleaded for rescuers to 'save me' and said 'everything is covered in blood.' Israeli authorities say that about 1,200 people were killed in the Oct. 7 attacks, with another about 250, most of whom were civilians, taken to Gaza as hostages. Advertisement The retrieval of the bodies of Weinstein Haggai and of Haggai brings the number of remaining hostages to 56. The Israeli government has said that 23 are believed to be still alive. 'We will continue to do everything in our power to bring our sisters and brothers back from hell,' Israeli President Isaac Herzog said in a statement. 'The living, for healing and rehabilitation, and the fallen, to be laid to rest in dignity. Every last one of them.' Advertisement The Hostages Families Forum, an Israeli group representing relatives of those taken, urged Israeli officials to immediately negotiate an end to the war to bring other captives back. 'Decision-makers must do everything necessary to reach an agreement that will return all 56 remaining hostages,' the group said in a statement. 'This is what the majority of the Israeli people want,' it added. The Trump administration welcomed the recovery of the bodies. Adam Boehler, President Trump's special envoy for hostage affairs, wrote on social media: 'We must not rest until all those murdered and held by Hamas, especially Americans Itay Chen and Omer Neutra, are returned to their families.' A cease-fire is seen as necessary to bringing the remaining hostages home. The Trump administration and other mediators have tried to broker a new pause in fighting after Israel ended the last truce in March. Under the latest US proposal, Israel and Hamas would stop fighting for 60 days and some hostages would be exchanged in return for Palestinians jailed by Israel. The United States said it would also back further negotiations on a permanent end to the war. Israel wants a temporary deal so it can eventually turn back to trying to defeat Hamas. But Hamas wants stronger guarantees that the cease-fire will lead to a permanent deal and has said it is willing to free the Israeli and foreign captives in Gaza as part of a broader agreement. The United States denounced Hamas's response to the latest proposal as 'unacceptable,' saying it 'only takes us backward.' A survey published in April by the Israeli Democracy Institute showed that more than 68 percent of Israelis believed that freeing the hostages was more important than removing Hamas from power. Advertisement Israel has continued its military offensive against Hamas in Gaza, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to destroy the militant group. More than 54,000 people have been killed in the enclave in the military campaign following Oct. 7, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Hunger is now widespread after Israel imposed a roughly 80-day aid blockade that was lifted in mid-May. But supplies are still meager, and the start of a new Israeli-backed aid distribution system has been marred by chaos, with Palestinians who were trying to obtain food supplies having been killed in recent days. This article originally appeared in
AsiaOne
14-05-2025
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Trump envoys see better chance for hostage release in Gaza , World News
TEL AVIV — US officials told families of hostages still held in Gaza they see a better chance of a deal for their release after Washington reached an accord with militant group Hamas for an American hostage's freedom that largely bypassed the Israeli government. US special envoy for hostage affairs Adam Boehler and Steve Witkoff, US special envoy to the Middle East, met families of hostages for almost two hours in Tel Aviv on Tuesday (May 13). Of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza, about 20 are said to be alive. Hamas on Monday released Edan Alexander, the last known living American hostage, ahead of President Donald Trump's visit to the region. Trump arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday. "I think there's a better chance now than before," Boehler told reporters in Tel Aviv ahead of meeting the families. Boehler, who is tasked with securing the release of US hostages, said Hamas could "pull a deal any day they want" and there was "hope of change" following Alexander's release. Alexander, 21, also an Israeli citizen and soldier, was among the 251 people Israel says were abducted on Oct 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel that triggered the ongoing war. "They're optimistic, and we've left with some optimism to hear that they have a plan that they hope to implement in the near future," said Udi Goren, cousin of Tal Haimi who was abducted and later confirmed dead. His body is still being held. The Hostages Families Forum, which represents many families of those held in Gaza, said Boehler and Witkoff told the meeting they would travel to Doha for talks on the war in Gaza. Israel has announced it is sending a delegation to Qatar. Egypt and Qatar have mediated talks throughout the war and most of the hostages have been released through diplomatic negotiations. Trump will travel to Qatar this week after Saudi Arabia. He is also set to visit the United Arab Emirates but not Israel. The families group said Witkoff expressed a preference for a diplomatic resolution and that he believed there was a genuine chance for progress in Doha. Israel government officials this month authorised an expanded military operation in Gaza that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said would be "intensive" despite dwindling public support in Israel for the war, which is in its 19th month. The president "is not going to tolerate anything other than everybody coming home and he will be relentless in that pursuit", Witkoff told the families, according to a video released by the forum. Father more helpful At the Tel Aviv hospital where his son was being treated, Alexander's father, Adi, told reporters on Tuesday that he believed Trump's influence made it more likely that the new negotiations could yield deals for the release of hostages and eventually an end to the war. "Edan's release is not just about Edan," he said, thanking the US president without mentioning Israel's Netanyahu. Hamas has said it would release the hostages in exchange for an end to the war and the release of Palestinians in Israeli jails. Israel insists that Hamas must disarm and dismantle its military and governing capabilities as a condition for peace. Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in its 2023 attack, according to Israeli officials. Israel's retaliatory campaign has levelled Gaza, killing over 52,000 people, mostly civilians, health officials in Gaza say. US and Israeli officials have sought to publicly project unity, despite Israel's concerns that Washington is pursuing its own Middle East agenda without fully considering Israeli interests. Speaking in Tel Aviv, Witkoff told reporters that both Netanyahu and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani did an "exceptional job" in securing Alexander's release. [[nid:717932]]
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Edan Alexander's release offers ‘window of opportunity' for wider hostage deal amid Trump Middle East visit
American and Israeli officials believe the release of Edan Alexander, 21, presents a "window of opportunity" to free the remaining 58 hostages still held by Hamas after 585 days since their capture on Oct. 7, 2023. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and hostage envoy Adam Boehler will travel from Israel to Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday for further negotiations for the release of not only the 24 hostages still believed to be alive, but also the bodies of at least 34 individuals who have been held by the terrorist group including four Americans: Itay Chen, Omer Neutra, and Gadi Haggai and Judi Weinstein Haggai. In a nearly two-hour meeting with Witkoff, Boehler and the Hostages Families Forum, both officials emphasized that they remain committed to returning all hostages and confirmed they would not be traveling to Doha if they did not believe there was a real chance in advancing negotiations. American Hostage Edan Alexander Released By Hamas After More Than 580 Days In Captivity While Alexander's return has been championed as a major success story, and both President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were reported to have spoken with the Israeli American from a hospital in Tel Aviv, immense concern remains over the hostages still held in the Gaza Strip. Though Israel ceased its military operations in the Gaza Strip to secure the safe transport of Alexander on Monday, it has not committed to any continued cessation of strikes. Read On The Fox News App In Witkoff's comments to the families of the hostages, he said President Trump would not "tolerate anything other than everybody coming home, and he will be relentless in that pursuit." He continued, "you saw what happened with the Houthis. You saw what happened when people don't do well with the United States, we don't do so well with them. So it's a message of do what we ask you to do. And you know then things will be better." Israeli reports also suggested the envoy may be feeling frustrated with his Israeli counterparts. "We want to bring the hostages home, but Israel is not willing to end the war. Israel is prolonging it despite the fact that we don't see where else we can go and that an agreement must be reached," Witkoff reportedly said during the meeting with the hostage families. "There is currently a window of opportunity that we hope Israel and all the mediators will take advantage of," he was reported to have added. "We are putting pressure on all the mediators and doing everything we can to bring the hostages home." The comments reportedly come following reports that Trump has also grown increasingly frustrated with his Israeli counterpart. Trump Strains Relationship With Netanyahu As Middle East Policy Increasingly Isolates Israel Israel said last week that Trump's visit to the Middle East would be "the window of opportunity" to secure a ceasefire otherwise it would continue with its newly announced plans to capture all of Gaza, despite immense international pushback and concerns over human rights abuses and violations of U.N.-established borders. The comments came after Netanyahu prompted immense outcry after he said his number one priority was destroying Hamas, not returning the hostages, despite opposition to the plan by the majority of Israelis. On Monday, Netanyahu reiterated his intent to "destroy" Hamas while speaking with injured reservists and confirmed that even if Hamas agrees to return the hostages, Israel will continue with its military operations. "In the coming days, we are going in with full force to complete the operation. Completing the operation means defeating Hamas. It means destroying Hamas," he said. "It's possible that Hamas will say, 'Time out — we want to release ten more [hostages].' Fine, bring them. We'll take them, and then we'll go in. But there will not be a situation in which we stop the war. There may be a temporary ceasefire, but we're going all the way," he confirmed. Witkoff's team did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's article source: Edan Alexander's release offers 'window of opportunity' for wider hostage deal amid Trump Middle East visit
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US envoy Boehler sees better chance for hostage release in Gaza
TEL AVIV (Reuters) - U.S. special envoy Adam Boehler said on Tuesday there was a better chance of securing the release of the remaining 58 hostages held in Gaza following the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander by Hamas a day earlier. Boehler spoke in Tel Aviv where he and Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East, met families of hostages for almost two hours. Both then traveled to Doha to join talks on a possible ceasefire in Gaza. "They're optimistic, and we've left with some optimism to hear that they have a plan that they hope to implement in the near future," said Udi Goren, the cousin of Tal Haimi who was abducted and later confirmed dead. His body is still being held in Gaza. Repeated rounds of talks to agree a ceasefire have failed as both Hamas and Israel refuse to yield on core demands. Israel is insisting on the return of all 58 hostages held in Gaza as well as the disarming of Hamas and the dismantling of its military and governing capabilities as a condition for peace. Hamas demands a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as well as a release of prisoners and detainees held in Israeli jails. The Hostages Families Forum, which represents many families of those held in Gaza, said that during the meeting, Witkoff expressed a preference for a diplomatic resolution and that he believed there was a genuine chance for progress in Doha.
Straits Times
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
US envoy Boehler sees better chance for hostage release in Gaza
Adam Boehler, U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs, speaks to the media as he and U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff visit the Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, Israel May 13, 2025. REUTERS/Nir Elias TEL AVIV - U.S. special envoy Adam Boehler said on Tuesday there was a better chance of securing the release of the remaining 58 hostages held in Gaza following the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander by Hamas a day earlier. Boehler spoke in Tel Aviv where he and Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East, met families of hostages for almost two hours. Both then traveled to Doha to join talks on a possible ceasefire in Gaza. "They're optimistic, and we've left with some optimism to hear that they have a plan that they hope to implement in the near future," said Udi Goren, the cousin of Tal Haimi who was abducted and later confirmed dead. His body is still being held in Gaza. Repeated rounds of talks to agree a ceasefire have failed as both Hamas and Israel refuse to yield on core demands. Israel is insisting on the return of all 58 hostages held in Gaza as well as the disarming of Hamas and the dismantling of its military and governing capabilities as a condition for peace. Hamas demands a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as well as a release of prisoners and detainees held in Israeli jails. The Hostages Families Forum, which represents many families of those held in Gaza, said that during the meeting, Witkoff expressed a preference for a diplomatic resolution and that he believed there was a genuine chance for progress in Doha. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
