JERUSALEM, Mar 25: Israel’s president said on Tuesday he was shocked that the issue of hostages being held by Palestinian militants in Gaza was no longer a top priority in the country, days after criticising the government’s war policy.
“I am quite shocked how suddenly the issue of the hostages is no longer at the top of the priority list and at the top of the news,” Isaac Herzog said in a video issued by his office, adding it was important to keep working towards “bringing the hostages home, down to the last one”.
“We must never lose sight of this issue, as a nation, until every last hostage is brought home. This is a national effort,” Herzog, who was speaking at a conference in Tel Aviv, continued.
Some 251 people, including women and children, were seized during Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel, which left 1,218 Israelis dead according to an AFP tally based on official data, and sparked a deadly war in Gaza.
Of those 58 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
On March 18, Israel launched a series of deadly air strikes on the Palestinian territory renewing the fighting after a nearly two-month ceasefire that saw the handover of 33 Israeli hostages from Gaza, including eight who were dead.
Since the resumption of fighting, the health ministry in Gaza has reported that at least 792 people have been killed, raising the overall death toll to 50,144.
Herzog’s comment followed a statement on Thursday in which he said he was “deeply troubled” by the policies of the government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“It is unthinkable to resume fighting while still pursuing the sacred mission of bringing our hostages home,” Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, said.
Thousands of Israelis have been holding daily protests in Jerusalem, angry over the government’s policies including a return to war, which many see as forsaking the hostages still being held in Gaza.
The families of the hostages have also been critical of the fighting, accusing the government of sacrificing their loved ones, who they had hoped would be released with the continuation of the ceasefire.
On Monday, Hamas’s armed wing released a video of two hostages, Elkana Bohbot and Yosef Haim Ohana. The two men, both abducted from a music festival, described their experiences in captivity and called to be released immediately. – TVS
