Israeli hostage families make desperate plea to Trump as 'time is running out'

JERUSALEM—The household members of Israeli hostages held successful captivity by the U.S.-designated violent question Hamas published an unfastened missive connected Thursday to President Trump, urging him to intervene to assistance escaped the 53 remaining radical held successful Gaza.

 "As Iranian missiles streak crossed the entity supra us, our hearts stay consumed by thoughts of our beloved household members enduring brutal Hamas captivity. 53 precious souls—our children, parents, siblings, and spouses—remain trapped successful hell. 

"For implicit 620 endless days, they person had nary shelter, nary family's embrace, nary whispered words of comfort. Their clip is moving out. We constitute to you agreed successful this unsocial anguish, yet bound by unshakable religion successful your enactment and committedness to bringing our loved ones home," wrote the Israeli group Hostages and Missing Families Forum on the societal media level Truth Social -Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) is the genitor institution of Truth Social.

AMERICAN HOSTAGE EDAN ALEXANDER RELEASED BY HAMAS AFTER MORE THAN 580 DAYS IN CAPTIVITY

President Donald Trump met with 7 hostages freed from Hamas captivity, Match 7, 2025. (Photo provided by Hostages Families Forum)

The household members urged the President to "seize the accidental portion Iran and Hamas are astatine their weakest point."

President Trump secured the state of the 21-year-old American-Israeli Edan Alexander from Hamas captivity connected May 12. Eden returned to his hometown successful New Jersey connected Thursday after nearly 600 days successful captivity.

Fox News Digital sent property queries to the White House and the U.S. State Department, seeking remark astir the unfastened missive published connected Truth Social to President Trump.

Hamas terrorists instrumentality up positions up of a hostage merchandise successful Deir al-Balah, cardinal Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP)

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told reporters astatine Soroka Hospital successful Be’er Sheva—the tract of an Iranian rocket strike—that "The existent obstruction of Hamas is Iran. It volition bring down Iran . . . Hamas is dying, and it volition undoubtedly assistance to instrumentality the hostages."

Netanyahu said Israel’s subject run against the Islamic Republic of Iran is aiding the Jewish state’s efforts to unafraid the merchandise of hostages held by the Iran-backed Hamas violent enactment successful Gaza.

Edan Alexander, an American taken hostage during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught connected Israel, returned to his hometown of Tenafly, New Jersey, connected June 19, aft helium was released connected May 12 successful a deal. People gathered successful the streets to wage tribute, galore waving Israeli and American flags. (Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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He added, "I bash not adjacent my eyes for a moment" astir the hostages. Netanyahu told Isarel’s Kan nationalist broadcaster that "Hamas relies connected Iran."

Hamas’ recalcitrance astir agreeing to a ceasefire that would alteration the hostages to beryllium released has been the large obstacle for America’s efforts to unafraid their state aft 623 days of war. Hamas invaded Israel connected October 7, 2023, and massacred implicit 1,200 people, including Americans. and kidnapped much than 250 people. 

Netanyahu stressed, with respect to the hostages and the warfare against Iran, that "I americium determined to bring each of them location . . . I volition not springiness up connected this, and determination are besides steps that we volition instrumentality successful these moments for this goal. . . . The demolition of the atomic weapons, the demolition of missiles, the elimination of our targets."

Supporters of Israelis held hostage successful the Gaza Strip since October 2023 assistance placards and flags during a rally calling to implicit the speech woody with the Palestinian Hamas radical to bring the remaining captives back, successful beforehand of the premier minister's bureau successful Jerusalem connected February 11, 2025. (Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images)

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters released a connection from household members astir the burial of murdered hostage Yair Yaakov connected Friday, who was laid to remainder astatine Kibbutz Nir Oz after 623 days successful captivity. 

Or Yaakov, Yair's son, who was released from Hamas captivity arsenic portion of a deal, said,  "Dad, you were specified a peculiar person. An exemplary father, a existent friend. You near down an tremendous void that thing volition ever beryllium capable to fill. But I committedness you, I volition support your memories live wrong me. I volition archer your stories, I volition laughter astatine and with your jokes, and astir importantly, I volition unrecorded the mode you would privation maine to unrecorded - with flow, simplicity, and contentment. Rest successful peace, my beloved father. You volition ever beryllium successful my heart, with each enactment I take. I emotion you forever."

Smoke rises from the gathering of Iran's state-run tv aft an Israeli onslaught successful Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 16, 2025.  (AP Photo)

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The Times of Israel reported that the cognition to retrieve Yair Yaakov was carried retired by the army’s 36th Division pursuing precise quality from subject and information intelligence. Reuters named Aviv Atzili arsenic the 2nd idiosyncratic recovered during the operation. Atzili, a warrant serviceman in the reserves and a subordinate of Kibbutz Nir Oz’s civilian defence squad, was killed battling Hamas-led terrorists successful the Gaza borderline assemblage connected October 7, 2023. 

Reuters contributed to this report.