Alon Gat, whose sister Carmel Gat is in Hamas captivity, tells Ynet that he turned down an invitation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to fly with him to Washington next week, as he fears the prime minister is endangering his sister’s life by intentionally delaying a hostage deal.
“Netanyahu invited me on the flight and at first I thought it could help, that we would be able to impact things,” he says. “I believed that on the flight, he would announce that he was signing the deal. But as the deadline approached, we realized that this wasn’t going to happen, and instead the opposite is true — he is hindering progress and isn’t making any decisions.”
He says that he believes other families currently expected to fly with Netanyahu’s delegation will join him in his decision.
“I couldn’t live with myself knowing that I was traveling with him and that at that time, god forbid, something had happened to Carmel. I know that Netanyahu is taking his time. I don’t know how he lives with it,” he adds.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this