Families of American hostages in Gaza describe their anguish and call on US government for help

WASHINGTON — When Omer Neutra’s parents last heard from him, he reassured them that he expected a quiet weekend.

But they still checked the news before getting ready for bed in New York, their nightly routine as parents of a soldier in the Israeli army tasked with protecting small villages near the Gaza Strip. What they saw frightened them.

“Of course everything was wrong. We immediately understood that he was there,” his mother, Orna Neutra, said Wednesday of Hamas’ brutal action on Oct. 7, which killed more than 1,200 civilians and soldiers and ignited a war in Gaza.

They would later learn that their son, who was a dual Israeli and American citizen, had been ambushed, pulled from his tank and taken as a hostage to Gaza, where he was believed to remain for more than 50 days later.

The Neutras joined family members of three other American hostages — including that of recently released four-year-old Abigail Edan — in calling on the governments of Israel and the United States to do everything they can to bring their loved ones home. The group is in Washington to make their case to journalists, at a hearing on Capitol Hill and in meetings with senior Biden administration officials.

International mediators, meanwhile, made progress Wednesday in extending a ceasefire in Gaza that has facilitated the release of several dozen hostages last week. The Israeli military said Wednesday that Hamas has released another 16 hostages from captivity in Gaza, the sixth release of Israeli hostages under the ceasefire.

Hamas militants attacking southern Israel kidnapped about 240 people, including infants, children, women, soldiers, older adults and Thai farm workers. The first waves of releases focused on women and children. Two Russian-Israeli women released by Hamas entered Israel on Wednesday evening.

“We’re so happy for children and women to come out, but it’s time for men to come out too,” said Neutra’s father, Ronen Neutra.

Ruby Chen said his 19-year-old son Itay, who is also a soldier and among the hostages, sent them a WhatsApp message on the morning of October 7 saying his base had been attacked. The couple initially thought it was “another episode we are used to, with Hamas firing rockets.” But the first reports from Israel made it clear to them that this was not the case.

They lost contact with their son later that morning. They went to the police and were told he had been reported missing; he was not found in any hospital and his name did not appear on the death lists.

Later, two Israeli officials knocked on their door and told them that their son had been kidnapped and was in Gaza. While the news cleared up at least some of their questions, Chen said, “We have no proof of life.” We have no indication of his medical status. We know nothing. Fifty-four days. Nothing.”

He added: “It’s been hell. We live in a different atmosphere, we live in a different universe than what you can understand.”

Also present were relatives of Abigail, whose parents were killed by Hamas militants who stormed the kibbutz where the family lived. The little girl crawled out from under her murdered father and fled to the neighbors, who were captured with her.

The child’s fate had attracted widespread attention worldwide, with President Joe Biden telling reporters on Sunday: “Thank God she’s home. I wish I was there to hold her.”

“We are on the other side now,” said her great-aunt Liz Hirsh Naftali. “Abigail is home. Not in her house. But she is at home in Israel. Because her house is destroyed. They cannot return to where they lived. She has no parents to go home to.”

Asked how the child was doing. Hirsh Naftali said: “Okay, because she has a loving family, because she will be supported.”

But she added: “Keep in mind that we won’t know for years what the effect is on these children or adults who have spent 50, 52, now 54 days in the dark.”

With the prospect of an extended ceasefire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under pressure to bring home all remaining hostages, but he has also underlined his intention to resume the military campaign against Hamas at the end of the ceasefire.

Israel’s bombing campaign and ground invasion of Gaza have killed more than 13,300 Palestinians, roughly two-thirds of whom were women and minors, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters.

The toll is likely much higher as officials have only updated the count sporadically since Nov. 11 due to the loss of services in the north. The ministry says thousands more people are missing and feared dead under the rubble.

The families on Wednesday repeatedly dismissed questions about the wider military conflict, with Noa Naftali, another relative of Abigail, insisting that the families’ only priority was to get their loved ones back “as quickly as possible and at any cost.” to get home.