Meeting Trump, freed hostage Edan Alexander calls for release of all remaining captives

Meeting with US President Donald Trump for the first time since his release from Hamas captivity, American-Israeli former hostage Edan Alexander urges him to act to secure the release of the remaining 50 hostages, a source familiar with the matter tells the Axios news site.

During the 30-minute Oval Office meeting, Trump told Alexander that the US at one point feared that Alexander had been killed during an Israeli strike on a tunnel where he was held.

Alexander, who managed to escape before the tunnel collapsed on top of him, told Trump that his life indeed was in danger and that the same case remains for the hostages still held in Gaza, who must be released as soon as possible.

Trump responded that he is aware of the dire situation of the remaining hostages and is working to quickly secure their release, the source tells Axios.

In footage of the Oval Office meeting, US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff can be heard asking Alexander to share with the president what happened after Trump won the election last November.

“They immediately took me to a new place, a good place,” Alexander shares.

“They weren’t too afraid of [former US president Joe] Biden,” Trump quips in response.

He adds that he and First Lady Melania Trump were very proud to have helped Alexander and noted that the fact that he is an American citizen ultimately worked in his favor.

עידן אלכסנדר ומשפחתו בחדר הסגלגל עם הנשיא טראמפ. סטיב וויטקוף אומר ברקע לעידן לספר מה קרה לו כשטראמפ נבחר לנשיאות והוא מספר שהעבירו אותו למקום טוב יותר. וויטקוף אומר לטראמפ ״אתה נבחרת והם (חמאס) פחדו ממך״ טראמפ: ״הם לא פחדו מביידן״ טראמפ: ״גאים שעזרנו לך, למלניה היה חשוב להיות… pic.twitter.com/NoijVR7yBv

— יוּנה לייבזון Yuna Leibzon (@YunaLeibzon) July 3, 2025