Rubio tells Herzog Trump is ‘deeply committed’ to return of ‘every single hostage’

Visiting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio tells President Isaac Herzog that US President Donald Trump is “strongly and deeply committed” to the return of every hostage being held in Gaza.

“On behalf of the president, I can tell you he’s strongly and deeply committed to the goal of every single hostage returning home, every single one, and not resting, not being silent, not forgetting, until all of them are home,” says Rubio in remarks ahead of a working meeting with Herzog, following sit-downs earlier today with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar. “We work in very close coordination with the government here, as you know, to make that a reality, and that remains a very strong priority.”

Herzog tells Rubio that Israel is “grateful to President Donald Trump for his friendship and solidarity with the people of Israel and the State of Israel, and we are grateful for his direct involvement in bringing back our hostages.”

The president says that amid Israel’s many challenges, “we are screaming, aching, praying, working tirelessly to bring each and every one of our hostages back home. This is our biggest hope as a nation and as individuals, and I want to thank you for this effort, and that you’re carrying on this holy mission.”

Rubio tells Herzog that the core of many of the threats to Israeli security is “Iran. By Iran, I mean the regime… radical clerics who have driven that nation in the wrong direction, and have isolated it from the world, but more importantly, have created the single greatest source of destabilization and sponsor of terrorism and violence on the planet.”