At Knesset memorial for Oct. 7 victims, Herzog says state obligated to bring hostages home

By Lazar Berman

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28 October 2024, 3:33 pm

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Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

President Isaac Herzog at a memorial for those killed on October 7 and in the subsequent war in Jerusalem, October 28, 2024 (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Speaking at the laying of the cornerstone for the Knesset memorial to those killed on October 7 and in the subsequent war, President Isaac Herzog calls for the “urgent and immediate” return” of the hostages in Gaza, calling it a “binding order of the state toward its citizens.”

“We listen to the families and we do not forget Maimonides’ command that there is no greater mitzvah than the mitzvah of redeeming captives,” he continues.

He also says that Israel’s legislative branch must always work toward one mission — “the Jewish and democratic state of Israel.”