From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, April 9, 2025
‘We owe our lives to you’: Ex-captives urge Trump to help return the remaining hostages
US President Donald Trump honors freed captives Iair Horn, Keith Siegel and Aviva Siegel, inviting them onstage as he addresses the National Republican Congressional Committee.
“Hamas is just a disaster, their level of hatred,” Trump says.
“These people [the ex-captives] what they had to go through… is just horrible,” he adds, noting the group of hostages released from Hamas captivity who he recently hosted in the Oval Office.
After greeting the trio, Trump gestures them to the podium.
“You saved the lives of 33 hostages,” Israeli-American Keith Siegel tells the crowd, referring to those freed during the first stage of the ceasefire and hostage deal that lapsed last month. “You set the hostage crisis at the highest priority. You got 33 of us home alive. We all owe our lives to you.”
He urges Trump to “please continue your tremendous efforts and tremendous actions and tremendous accomplishments. We’ll get, with your help, all of the remaining 59 hostages still in Gaza back home.”
Aviva Siegel, who was released during a ceasefire in November 2023, thanks Trump for “bringing my Keith home,” saying that while all of their family was delighted by his return, “I am the most happiest.”
“We need you to bring all the hostages home. There are 24 that are alive and 59 to come home to their families, just like I received Keith,” she says, noting Horn’s brother Eitan is still a hostage in Gaza.
Iair Horn speaks last, saying, “I’ve been in hell for 498 days. I’ve been held in hell with Hamas terrorists.”
“We didn’t see the light but… when we heard President Trump get elected, we knew, we knew, that there’s now someone who makes things happen,” he says.
“We are here because of President Trump,” Horn continues. “It’s really surreal to be here, you know. I’m a simple man, I’m running the bar in the kibbutz, in Nir Oz, where I lived. And now I’m here with President Trump, who is running the world.”
Stressing his gratitude to Trump, Horn asks that he continue helping push for the release of his brother and the other hostages.
“In a few days we mark the Passover… I hope he [Eitan] can sit with us at the seder of Passover,” Horn adds.
The Times of Israel Community.