Hostages Forum says Gaza captives ‘disappeared’ from government agenda; FM denies

As Israel’s preemptive campaign against Iran continues, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum accuses the government of abandoning the effort to bring their loved ones home, claiming in a statement that the issue has “disappeared” from the government’s agenda.

They describe this as a “blatant and painful disregard” for a critical and time-sensitive issue, and demand immediate action — specifically, the dispatch of a negotiating delegation to Doha to reach a comprehensive deal for the release of all 53 hostages. Without such a move, they say, “there can be no full Israeli victory.”

The statement did not clarify whether it was referring to a literal removal of the issue from the government’s agenda, as it did not indicate if or when the matter had previously been scheduled for discussion or when it may have been dropped. A forum spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.

In a closed session of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar rejected claims that the hostage issue had been neglected, a source with knowledge confirmed to The Times of Israel.

“The issue of the hostages has not been neglected. There are ongoing contacts, and we want to reach a hostage deal based on the Witkoff framework,” Sa’ar said, adding that “we have given a positive response and are currently waiting for Hamas’s reply.”