The Hostage Families Made The Deal Happen
As Israelis, we know not to believe anything until we see it with our own eyes. But in anticipation of Operation Wings of Freedom, I’d like to share a message.
With all due respect to the diplomats, negotiators, politicians, President, Prime Minister, President-elect, and journalists, the people who made the deal happen are the hostage families.
The hostage families deserve the credit for this deal. And the hostage families alone.
It’s the hostage families who are marching in the streets every week, multiple times a week. They’ve marched for four days straight, for more than 70 miles (more than 100 kilometers), from Jerusalem to Kibbutz Re’im, sleeping in tents along the way. They’ve been aggressively sprayed by water cannons and sometimes worse.
They’ve stood on bridges and on highways in the heat and in the rain, holding the photos of their loved ones high above their heads, not allowing their arms to tire for one second. Their cries and their love have brought 500,000 people together in the streets of Tel Aviv, unifying us.
It’s the hostage families who are traveling thousands and thousands of miles to meet with anyone, anyone who will speak with them, anyone who they can urge, demand to help them bring their loved ones home. Sometimes, they take multiple flights in one day. From New York to Atlanta to Washington, D.C. From London to Geneva to Paris. Meeting to meeting, rally to rally.
It’s hostage families who give interviews to the media- sometimes not even in their first language. All while they’re running on zero hours of sleep. Using every second allotted to them to speak about their loved ones, to bring the face on a poster to life, and plead that they be released.
And when they’re not in meetings, or at rallies, or giving interviews to the media, they’re advocating on social media non-stop. They’re posting videos and photos and stories about every single hostage. Every single one.
They’ve stood and shouted and marched and have not stopped moving. Even as they carry the most indescribable pain, fear, and worry that no one can imagine.
And perhaps most insane is that some of these hostage families were once hostages themselves. They were released or rescued. They’re dealing with unimaginable trauma, and they haven’t even begun to take care of themselves. Their healing process will not begin until all the hostages are home.
So, please, while the effort of the diplomats, negotiators, and politicians is necessary and critical, the people who deserve all the credit are the hostage families.
Bring all of them home. Now.