Families of Israeli hostages who met Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump’s two envoys —Steve Witkoff and Adam Boehler—were told there's a significant chance of progress in negotiations for the release of their loved ones in the coming days.
Behind the scenes, Trump’s team is applying heavy pressure on both sides—Israel and Hamas—to strike a deal that would secure the hostages' release and halt the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza.
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(Photo: REUTERS/Nir Elias, Yariv Katz, REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein, Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
While the Americans denied backing a recent Hamas proposal conveyed by Palestinian-American businessman Bishara Bahbah, Israeli officials suspect the U.S. introduced the proposal as a pressure tactic to soften Israeli resistance to ending the war.
Israel is expected to oppose the release of just five living hostages—a deal far below the original Witkoff plan, which included ten hostages on day one of a ceasefire along with the return of half the bodies of the dead.
The U.S. is reportedly pressing Israel to accept a version of the deal in which Hamas receives American guarantees for an end to the war, which could bring the terror group closer to accepting Witkoff's original terms.
Hamas, which has lost all trust in Israel after the collapse of previous negotiations, now insists that any new agreement be signed by Witkoff himself—who would also be required to shake hands with senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya. This gesture, while symbolic, would in practice amount to American recognition of Hamas.
Though Israel officially rejected Hamas’ proposal, senior officials acknowledged that it marked a breakthrough. Until now, Hamas had refused to consider any proposal other than one that included an immediate end to the war. Government sources credit the shift to intensified military pressure and argue that continued pressure could bring Hamas to accept the original Witkoff plan.
That view stands in contrast to that of many hostage families, who fear the widening military operation puts their loved ones at even greater risk. Witkoff, meanwhile, is working to convince Israeli leadership to show flexibility on the ceasefire issue, as Wednesday will mark 600 days to the war.
Meanwhile, Families of Israelis held hostage in Gaza accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of inflicting emotional distress after he hinted at possible progress in talks — without providing any concrete information.
“These kinds of statements are destroying the families,” said Eli Albag, whose daughter Liri was freed after 477 days in captivity. Albag spoke Tuesday morning to Ynet, following a video Netanyahu posted the day before in which he said, “I hope we’ll be able to announce something,” fueling speculation of a breakthrough. No further details were given.
“There’s no real update, just a general expression of hope,” officials later clarified, adding that no breakthrough is expected in the immediate future. Families—many of whom have lived in a cycle of hope and despair for months—expressed fury over what they called an “emotional manipulation.”
“When Liri was still in captivity, every message like this made us hopeful—only to be crushed moments later,” Albag said. “It’s insanity. It causes anxiety and frustration that could end very badly. Some end up hospitalized. Just imagine what it’s like for a family whose loved one has been in captivity for 600 days.”
Albag said he knew of someone who had considered self-harm the previous night. “I’ve been through this myself. I also thought of doing something extreme—not necessarily to myself. It’s a dangerous and irrational situation and it keeps getting worse.”
Yotam Cohen, brother of kidnapped soldier Nimrod Cohen, slammed Netanyahu’s remarks as “psychological terror.”
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“The prime minister casually throws in a comment about my brother’s life—it’s vile, whether there’s a deal or not,” he said in a Ynet interview. “It’s being handled in a crude and disgusting way.”
According to Cohen, recently released hostages have reported that Nimrod is in poor condition, barely eats and doesn’t communicate with others in captivity. “If there’s no comprehensive deal, we won’t see the ones who are still alive.”
Hagai Angrest, father of kidnapped soldier Matan Angrest, said his son suffered a severe lynching, is seriously wounded and in life-threatening condition. “The prime minister is treating this like theater. It’s not a joke—he’s playing with human lives instead of taking responsibility,” Angrest told Ynet.
“He hasn’t even met us. [Coordinator for the Hostages and the Missing] Gal Hirsch said Netanyahu is too busy to spare even two minutes. In the U.S., I have an open door. There, hostage release is a top priority. Here, it’s item number six.”
The families’ outrage intensified after Netanyahu’s video. Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, said, “Netanyahu is tormenting us day and night while my Matan is alone in a tunnel, suffering from muscular atrophy. This has happened so many times—I can only interpret it as intentional abuse. Enough already. Give me back my child!”
Ruby Chen, father of fallen IDF soldier and hostage Itay Chen, added: “We’re fed up with empty statements. We want action—action that reflects Jewish values, like mutual responsibility. The prime minister could end the war today after eliminating Hamas leadership and bring home the 58 hostages who were kidnapped under his watch.”
Chen said Netanyahu hasn’t met with his family in over a year. “This is just another hollow statement that creates a rollercoaster of expectations followed by disappointment. He refuses to instruct the negotiating team to close a deal for the last remaining hostage. Clearly, this statement wasn’t aimed at us.”
Lishay Miran-Lavi, wife of hostage Omri Miran, wrote on X: “Today, tomorrow—what difference does it make? You may have time, but they don’t. On Wednesday, it’ll be 600 days—600 days that Omri has been held by Hamas.
“The only announcement we want to hear is the date Omri and the 57 other hostages are coming home. Tonight, Roni and Alma will say ‘good night’ to a poster of their dad again. And again they’ll ask, ‘When?’”