Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited released hostages at a central Israeli hospital Tuesday evening, where one former captive recounted a chilling remark made to him by a senior Hamas commander during his time in captivity.
Eitan Mor, one of 20 hostages freed from Gaza Monday, told Netanyahu that he had spoken during his captivity with Izz al-Din al-Haddad, the head of Hamas’ military wing. According to Mor, Haddad told him: “If anyone gets out first, it’ll be you. Your father doesn’t go to protests anyway, so we’ll send you back first.”
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara visiting freed hostage Eitan Mor and his partents at the hospital
(Photo: Prime Minister's Office)
The comment referred to ongoing protests held by the families of hostages, demanding more aggressive government action to bring their loved ones home. Mor’s father, Tzvika, has not been among the more vocal activists and is associated with the Tikvah Forum, a group supportive of the government’s wartime policies.
The meeting took place at Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva and included other freed hostages—Avinatan Or, Alon Ohel, Guy Gilboa Dalal and Evyatar David—who are continuing their recovery following their release.
Netanyahu, accompanied by his wife Sara, said the visit was timed to coincide with the end of the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah. “Over the past two years, my wife and I have met with the families many times. We cried with them, we embraced them and I promised: we will bring them back,” he said. “There wasn’t a single day I didn’t receive updates on their condition. Now that they are embraced by their families, we embrace them as well.”
Netanyahu praised Gal Hirsch, his envoy for hostages and missing persons, for his work with the families. He added that the government was continuing efforts to retrieve the bodies of hostages who died in Hamas captivity. “With the same determination and responsibility, we are working to bring them back. We will spare no effort or means.”
The prime minister said he expected additional developments soon: “I believe we will have news in the coming hours regarding the return of more fallen hostages. We are determined to bring everyone home.”
The visit was held at a hospital where many of the hostages’ families have expressed support for the government, in contrast to other hospitals where relatives have publicly criticized Netanyahu’s handling of the war and hostage crisis.
During the meeting, former hostages shared difficult details of their time in captivity and said they had picked up Arabic while in Gaza. Evyatar David thanked the prime minister “for the efforts to bring us back,” and Avinatan Or added, “I didn’t vote for you, but I’m glad you’re the prime minister and that you did the right thing.”
Sara Netanyahu told the group, “Your families are incredible—they dropped everything to focus solely on bringing you home.” Tzvika Mor added: “Now we’re getting our lives back.”