Families of Israeli hostages waited anxiously Thursday as negotiations over a prisoner swap deal with Hamas hung in the balance before new terms were finally announced.
Osnat Meiri, the aunt of 9-year-old Ohad Munder-Zihri, who was taken away along with his mother and grandparents, said the experience was harrowing but she remains hopeful that her relatives will return home.
“It’s very difficult because it’s a roller coaster ride, you always have a lump in your chest, and you’re at the mercy of people who have no mercy,” she said. I. “We still hope and I still believe that my administration will be successful in its efforts to bring our abducted families home.”
Ms Meiri called on the Israeli government to avoid actions that could jeopardize the agreement, which calls for the return of 50 Israeli hostages in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons and a four-day ceasefire that takes effect on Friday morning.
„Ich hoffe wirklich, dass die Verantwortlichen eine große Verantwortung für die Dinge haben, die sie sagen, und ich hoffe ihrerseits, dass sie ihr Möglichstes tun, zwei- oder dreimal darüber nachzudenken, bevor sie Dinge sagen, die den Verhandlungen s chaden könnten.” She said.
The Forum for Hostages and Missing Families held a news conference on Thursday without the presence of relatives of the detainees, who were said to be under acute psychological stress as negotiations neared completion.
Danny Shek, a former Israeli diplomat and head of the group’s diplomatic team, described the mood among the families as “very tense” but “hoping for the best.”
So far, the families have not received details about which hostages will be released in the first exchange, nor evidence from Hamas that they are still alive, forum officials told reporters.
Mr Shek said the families expected further exchanges after the deal.
“We expect this transaction to go smoothly,” he said. “We also expect that efforts to release the remaining nearly 200 people held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip will begin immediately thereafter.”
Families of the hostages have staged regular protests since their capture in deadly Hamas raids on October 7, trying to pressure the Israeli government to do more to bring them home.
“To those who come to us and say we are doing the best we can, I have just one simple message,” Mr. Shek said. “I’m sure there’s one small thing you could do more of.”
Forum officials also said they are looking forward to addressing the complex medical and psychological needs of returnees after they have endured long-term trauma over the past six weeks.
Forum members also called on negotiators to give the Red Cross access to hostages who were not involved in the original exchange.
Source: I News
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