Former hostages and members of the Israeli Hostages and Missing Families Forum released a video jointly urging U.S. President Donald Trump to facilitate the release of the remaining 50 hostages held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza. Some 20 of the remaining Israeli hostages are believed to be alive but at risk due to being subjected to deliberate starvation by Hamas.
“President Trump, we want to thank you for bringing us home. We know it wasn’t easy. Your leadership and your courage gave us back our lives and our families. We are here today because you chose to act,” former hostage Naama Levy said on Thursday. Levy survived 477 days in captivity in Gaza and in May, she told the Israeli public that IDF airstrikes were her greatest fear .
“Fifty hostages are still there – I was one of them – and I know what life underground means. Endless hunger, constant fear, darkness. Every day there is a fight to stay alive,” former hostage Ohad Ben Ami said. Ben Ami was released in early February after surviving 491 difficult days in captivity.
Earlier this month, Hamas released a propaganda video showing the severely emaciated Israeli hostage Evyatar David in a narrow underground tunnel.
Former hostage Doron Steinbrecher recalled the fear of being killed amid the fighting between IDF troops and Hamas terrorists.
“I remember being there, hearing the explosions above my head, praying they won’t get too close. Every sound made my heart stop. This is what they live through right now, every moment of every day,” she explained.
Sasha Troufanov, a former hostage and dual Russian and Israeli citizen who said he found faith during his captivity , warned that the lives of the remaining Israeli hostages are threatened by the planned expanded Israeli military operation against Hamas forces in Gaza City.
“The decision to expand the military operation puts each and every one of them in very great danger. Every bullet, every strike could be the one that ends their life,” Troufanov argued.
Hamas officials have repeatedly threatened to execute Israeli hostages if they believe Israeli forces are approaching.
In August 2024, Hamas murdered six Israeli hostages in Gaza, including the dual U.S.-Israeli citizen Hersch Goldberg-Polin .
Former hostage Arbel Yehud urged Trump to help release her partner, Ariel Cunio, who is among the remaining 20 living hostages.
“My partner is still in captivity. I dream of the day I can hug him again. I dream of the day we can all be here together. They all need to come back home,” she said.
Yehud, who was released in January after 482 days in captivity, has been advocating for the remaining hostages since her release.
Michal, whose husband Alex Lobanov was murdered last year in captivity by Hamas, called for urgent action to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza.
“For my family, it was already too late. When the military pressure closed in, Hamas executed my husband. He came back to me in a coffin. President Trump, please act now before it’s too late for them too,” she urged.
