US, Israel and others vow united fight for hostages at Montana summit

Representatives from the United States and six allied nations have pledged to work together to counter global hostage-taking and detentions considered unjust, they say in a joint statement after talks in Montana.

“We are united in our demand for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,” reads the statement from the US, Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Israel and the United Kingdom.

US special envoy Adam Boehler led the talks on Monday and Tuesday in Big Sky, Montana. The summit, which came after Boehler withdrew his candidacy to be the top hostage envoy following criticism from Israel, was first reported on by The Times of Israel.

Representatives discussed sharing information about detainees and other collaborative efforts to free their citizens held around the world.

“We will spare no effort, in accordance with international law, to bring home hostages and unjustly or arbitrarily detained individuals and to deter such future acts,” the statement says, without providing specifics.

Boehler, who was involved in efforts that led to the freedom of American school teacher Marc Fogel from Russia last month, says the gathering was centered on “how to support individual freedom and stop the hostage takers who try to take it away.”

The group vowed to work collectively to “identify and deploy every diplomatic, economic, and strategic tool at our disposal to bring these individuals home while deterring future such acts,” a US State Department official says.

One living American and the bodies are four others are being held by Hamas in Gaza since October 7, 2023.