Families of October 7 victims visit Australia parliament

Relatives and a friend of Israelis taken hostage and killed by Hamas visit Australia’s Parliament House, sharing personal stories in an effort to lobby for international support for all hostages to be freed — and to support Israel’s war effort.

The group of five will meet political leaders during a two-day visit in Canberra.

“Our aim first is to get the hostages back, all of them,” Elad Levy tells reporters outside the Parliament House. Levy’s niece, Roni Eshel, was a 19-year-old soldier initially thought kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7 incursion into Israel but confirmed dead weeks later.

“Our second aim is to get the support of the Australian people and the Australian government… for Israel’s actions in wiping out Hamas and in our military actions right now to eradicate Hamas,” Levy says.

Australia’s major political parties have supported Israel’s right to defend itself but have urged Israel to comply with international law by containing noncombatant casualties in Gaza.