Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks by phone this evening with Talia Herkin, the mother of hostage Maxim Herkin, expressing his commitment to returning her son and the 58 other captives still held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.
Netanyahu “expressed the commitment of Israel—and his personal commitment—to bringing Maxim Herkin and all the hostages home, back into the arms of their families,” says the Prime Minister’s Office in a statement following the phone call.
During the conversation, Netanyahu congratulates Pete, Maxim’s younger brother, who was called up for a traditional Torah reading this week in honor of his Bar Mitzvah, the premier’s office adds.
Pete was 11 years old when Maxim was taken captive by Hamas terrorists from the Nova desert rave on October 7, 2023.
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
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, April 3, 2025
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
