Hostage forum accuses Israeli government of abandoning hostages by continuing the war against Hamas

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents the families of many Israeli hostages, accused the Israeli government on Saturday of abandoning the hostages through the continuation of the war against the Iranian-backed terrorist organization Hamas. 

"This is an unprecedented historic missed opportunity," the forum stated. The organization urged “every citizen” of Israel to realize that "a historic chance will be lost due to the insistence on continuing the war and abandoning the hostages."

The organization urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government to embrace a comprehensive regional agreement "that would bring a transformation to the Middle East, end the war, and secure the return of all 59 hostages."

The forum further claimed that the Israeli government is "acting contrary to President Trump’s policy and completely against the will of the overwhelming majority of the Israeli public.” 

“We call on the government to make history: to choose to end the war, to return all the hostages, and to seize this historic regional opportunity," the forum continued.

"The return of the hostages is a precondition for victory, for national renewal, and for restoring the public’s trust in the government. There is only one path – we will bring them back, we will rise," the organization concluded. 

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel, massacring 1,200 Israelis, mainly civilians and kidnapped 251 people from nearby Israeli border communities. It was believed until recently that 24 of the remaining 59 hostages are still alive. However, Trump recently revealed that he believes that fewer than 24 hostages are still alive. 

"Out of 59 hostages, 24 are alive – but my understanding now is that that number is even smaller," Trump said. 

The Israeli government has, since the beginning of the war, stated that its goals are to dismantle Hamas as a military and political power in Gaza, secure the release of the hostages, and prevent Gaza from posing any future threat to the Jewish state’s security.

While the majority of Israelis have backed these war goals, there have been growing disagreements in Israeli society whether it is possible to destroy Hamas while simultaneously securing the release of the hostages. This tension between the different war goals has resulted in discussions about which goal should be prioritized. 

Last month, the conservative Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich caused controversy by arguing that destroying Hamas is a more important goal than securing the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. 

“We need to tell the truth: returning the hostages is not the most important goal, [but] it is of course a very, very, very important goal,” Smotrich stated. 

“Victory over Hamas is intended to protect human life,” Smotrich continued, adding that “nothing endangers human life more… than capitulation to a murderous terrorist organization, leaving it in power, armed, in Gaza.”

The Israeli government has sought to balance securing the release of the hostages with the goal of dismantling Hamas to prevent future attacks like those of Oct. 7.

In early November 2023, barely a month after the massacre, the senior Hamas terrorist Ghazi Hamad openly called for Israel’s destruction. 

“Israel is a country that has no place on our land. We must remove that country because it constitutes a security, military and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation and must be finished. We are not ashamed to say this, with full force,” Hamad said in an interview on Lebanese TV. The senior Hamas official openly threatened that the terrorist organization would commit future October 7-style massacres of Jews in Israel. 

“We must teach Israel a lesson, and we will do this again and again. The Al-Aqsa Flood is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth, because we have the determination, the resolve, and the capabilities to fight,” Hamad warned. 

Hamas’s antisemitic charter openly calls for Israel’s destruction and the murder of all Jews worldwide. 

While there is a wide support in Israeli society for the hostages and their families, many Israelis are simultaneously concerned that an undefeated Hamas will continue to threaten Israel’s security in the future. 

Last month, families of over 1,000 fallen IDF soldiers signed a public letter that urged the Israeli government to continue the war until Hamas is defeated and destroyed. 

"Our loved ones went out to war to achieve victory, safety, and security. Tragically, they did not come home. It is our duty to see their will fulfilled. We stand with the Government of Israel and its leadership – do not accept a partial victory. We must keep going until the war is won,” the families of the fallen IDF soldiers stated.