The remaining 58 Israeli hostages who were kidnapped by Hamas 600 days ago have been “abandoned” and “forgotten” by their government, their anguished relatives have claimed.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was also accused of having “failed” on the day of the attacks and every day since by Ofri Bibas, aunt of hostage Kfir, who was 10 months old when he was killed in captivity.
“Prime Minister, you failed on that day and have failed for the last 600 days. You didn’t take responsibility and won’t investigate what happened,” said Bibas, whose sister — Kfir’s mother — was also taken captive but later freed, at the press conference, as reported by The Times of Israel.
Her comments at a press conference held in Tel Aviv on Wednesday to mark the grim anniversary, directed at Netanyahu, referred to the Israeli leader’s refusal to set up an official inquiry into the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,200 Israelis and the kidnapping of 251 others.
“So many soldiers gave their lives. Wars have to end with diplomacy. How many more soldiers and hostages have to die for this to end?” Bibas added.
Relatives of the remaining 58 hostages accused the Israeli government of abandoning those in the IDF who had fought for their country before being kidnapped by Hamas militants.
“I want to turn here to every mother and father: Imagine standing next to me, giving everything for the state and the homeland, but being abandoned and forgotten. It can unfortunately happen to every one of us,” Anat Angrest, whose son Matan was kidnapped from a burning IDF tank, said at the press conference.
Many more Israelis will refuse to serve in the IDF or even abandon their citizenship, she warned.
“This is not just my war, or the war of the Angrest family, or of 58 families,” she said.
Relatives of Israeli casualties in previous conflicts with Hamas also slammed what they saw as the inaction of Netanyahu as they addressed the press from the Hostages Forum offices in Tel Aviv.
One of the speakers, Leah Goldin, lost her son Hadar in the conflict in Gaza in 2014, but Hamas has still not returned his body.
“Hadar was abandoned. It was seen as a private matter of the Goldin family. Now there are 58 more Hadar Goldins in Gaza. This is a national issue,” Leah said.
Furious protests have been held across Israel to mark 600 days since the October 7 attacks, with many demanding a new hostage deal or even fresh elections in the country.
Starting at 6:29 a.m., the exact time Hamas launched its attacks, protesters gathered across the country to form a yellow bow visible from above as a symbol of solidarity with the hostages.
Near the US Embassy branch in Tel Aviv, the numbers 58 and 600, along with the words “Save Them Now,” were spelled out in the sand.
Yellow balloons were released in the unofficially renamed Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, where protesters in matching T-shirts gathered.
One of the freed hostages, Arbel Yehoud, 29, praised President Trump for having “opened the door” for her to be freed, but called on Netanyahu’s government to step up its efforts to help those still in captivity.
“I was there. I know exactly what the hostages are going through,” Yehoud said. “I call on the Israeli nation and its leader, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: Trump opened the door, Edan [Alexander] went out, and this door has to stay open until all come home.”
