U.S. President Donald Trump promised that there would be no reconstruction of Gaza until the return of Ran Gvili, an Israeli police officer whose body is held in the Hamas-ruled enclave, his father said Monday.
“It won’t happen until Rani is back,” said Itzik Gvili, whose son Ran is the last hostage taken on Oct. 7, whose body remains in Gaza. Gvili served in the Israel Police’s special operations unit.
Speaking to ynet, Gvili recounted a visit last week by the family to the United States, where they met with Trump, his son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
“It was an excellent visit—unbelievable,” Gvili said. “Trump welcomed us with warmth and love. We looked him in the eyes and he said, ‘I will bring your son home.’ Witkoff and Kushner said the same. He honored us in a way that’s hard to explain. He sat with us, spoke to us, asked questions, and he knew everything about Rani. He studied the material.”
Rani’s mother, Talik, said the Americans believe Hamas when it claims it doesn’t exactly know where Rani is. What do you think?
"The Americans say Hamas is making every effort to find him. But we’re telling them we don’t believe that. Hamas is playing games. The current game is pressure to force the truth out. Everyone’s applying pressure—Egypt, Qatar."
Do you feel that beyond the promise, Trump gave you a kind of deadline? That nothing will move forward until Rani returns?
"Until Rani comes back, there will be no reconstruction in Gaza. That’s what he promised. Hamas must also disarm—which probably won’t happen—but he said it. All of this must happen. If Rani doesn’t return, nothing will move forward. That was his promise."
But last week, Rani’s uncle, David Tzioni, told ynet that Trump didn’t promise to delay the next phase of his plan until Rani is released.
"The president doesn’t have to know every micro-detail about Rani—and yet he knows everything. We, Israel, have to constantly remind him that Rani is still in the field. We provide the Americans with information, and they apply the pressure. It’s not Trump himself sitting with the Egyptians—it’s his envoys."
For two years, the mantra of the protests was ‘Until the last hostage returns.’ Now we see demonstrations about other issues. Do you feel Rani’s case is being pushed aside?
"I don’t know. I don’t go to the protests. We make statements. What’s going on at the protests—about a state commission of inquiry or not—I’m not involved. I’m not following it. Honestly, it doesn’t interest me right now. What matters to me is my son. The main protest tent has already closed. The people still there want to help us as much as they can, but I understand they can’t do much right now. That’s okay. Israel is not forsaken. I just hope the people of Israel don’t forget Rani, who went out to save them on October 7. Rani wasn’t kidnapped from the Nova festival. Rani fought. He came to save the country. He saved an entire kibbutz. So today, I believe the people, the nation, need to step up—to help save him."