Families of American-Israeli hostages to attend Trump inauguration
Relatives of captives say they will meet with officials from incoming administration and members of Congress during trip to Washington later this month
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
Relatives of the seven American-Israeli hostages still held in Gaza will attend the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20, amid high hopes that tough talk from the incoming leader will help push a long-sought deal for their freedom past the finish line.
The families announced the plans in a joint statement Thursday. While in Washington, they will also meet with officials from the incoming administration along with members of Congress and their staff, the families said.
“The families are urging leaders to prioritize the safe return of their loved ones and to take decisive action to bring an end to their prolonged captivity,” they said.
Attending the inauguration will be the parents of hostage Edan Alexander, the parents and brother of slain hostage Omer Neutra, the parents of slain hostage Itay Chen, the father of hostage Sagui Dekel-Chen and the daughter of slain hostages Gad Haggai and Judi Weinstein.
Former hostage Aviva Siegel, whose husband Keith Seigel remains in Gaza, will also attend the ceremony along with their daughter and Keith’s sister.
The parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was killed by his captors along with five others while being held by the Hamas terror group in late August, will travel to the inauguration as well.
Trump this week reiterated his warning that “all hell will break loose” in the Middle East if the hostages are not released by his January 20 inauguration.
The incoming president has repeatedly used the phrase regarding the release of the hostages as negotiations continue for a hostage release and ceasefire deal, though he has at times appeared to indicate he may be referring to those with US citizenship rather than all the hostages.
“We want to get back those hostages, for Israel and for us. We do have people who are hostages, being held,” he said at a press conference Tuesday.
“If this deal is not done with the people representing our nation by the time I get to office, all hell is going to break out,” Trump said. “It will not be good for Hamas, and frankly, it will not be good for anyone.”
???????? Breaking: Donald Trump closes out his press conference with this:
“We wanna get back those hostages, If this deal's not done with the people representing our nation by the time I get to office, all hell is going to break out. Thank you very much."
BOSS!! pic.twitter.com/mAaLrWtFyj
— Based DK (@Back_2TheMiddle) January 7, 2025
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been expected to make the trip for Trump’s second inauguration, but a senior aide to the premier said Thursday that he would likely not be among the world leaders to attend the Capitol Hill ceremony.
Trump and his team are not yet formally part of the ongoing negotiations, but they have been cooperating with the outgoing administration, and incoming US envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff has traveled to the region several times since his appointment in November. He was expected to travel to Qatar this week, where the mediated hostage deal talks are being held.
The seven hostages holding American citizenship are among 98 captives remaining in Gaza, the vast majority of them kidnapped during Hamas’s devastating October 7, 2023, assault on southern Israel, during which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 abducted into the Palestinian enclave.
At least 34 of the hostages taken that day have been confirmed dead by the Israel Defense Forces, which announced Wednesday that it had recovered the body of Youssef Ziyadne, 53, and had grave concerns for the life of his son Hamza Ziyadne, 22.
On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said mediators were “very close” to securing a ceasefire and hostage release agreement between Israel and Hamas and that an agreement was all but inevitable, even if it has to wait for the next administration to be finalized.
A plan unveiled by US President Joe Biden in May 2023 was an Israeli proposal that envisioned a three-staged hostage release. Now, however, the US, Qatar and Egypt are largely focusing on reaching an agreement for the first phase of that framework, during which the remaining female, elderly and severely ill hostages would be released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners, a partial IDF withdrawal from Gaza and a mass influx of humanitarian aid into the Strip.
The talks, though said to be close to a deal, have also become snagged on key issues. Hamas has said it would free its remaining hostages only if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from the Gaza Strip. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free.
Another problem concerns which hostages would be released during the first crucial phase. Netanyahu’s office says it has yet to receive any list from Hamas, which it says is a precondition for any deal to advance. While media reports have claimed that Hamas has approved a list of 34 names, Israel says it has not yet formally received any roster. The families of hostages are concerned that if a phased deal goes through, only the first part will be completed and hostages who remain in Gaza could be stuck there indefinitely.
Hamas released 105 civilians during a weeklong truce in late November 2023, and four hostages were released before that.
Eight hostages have been rescued by troops alive, and the bodies of 40 hostages have also been recovered, including three mistakenly killed by the Israeli military as they tried to escape their captors.
Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.
