Israel
Return to hostilities is driving a wedge between hostage families
While some protest against renewed military action, others see it as necessary pressure on Hamas
March 27, 2025 11:14
While some protest against renewed military action, others see it as necessary pressure on Hamas
March 27, 2025 11:14“We came to a dead end with a situation in which no hostages were released and no fighting was taking place, this was the best scenario for Hamas, with no urgency to come to a deal. Maybe, now, they will.”
This is what Ilan Dalal, whose son Guy Gilboa Dalal is being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, told the JC as fighting resumed in Gaza.
His son was expected to be freed in the second phase of the ceasefire along with the rest of the 24 living hostages. Guy, who was abducted on October 7 at the Nova music festival, was recently seen in a Hamas propaganda video with his friend Evyatar David, forced to witness the release of other Israeli hostages.
“For our family, it’s getting harder. We get up every morning and gather ourselves together for another day and we always have the hope that something will happen, that maybe there will be a breakthrough in negotiations. We just want our families to come back,” Dalal said.
“We have lived for more than 17 months with big holes in our hearts and we miss Guy. His birthday is on May 10 – he will be 24. This would be his second birthday in captivity. We hope he will be home before,” he added.
Following the resumption of hostilities, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum released a statement last week attacking the government. “The greatest fear of the families, of the abductees and the citizens of Israel has come true,” it said. Forty former captives and 250 family members subsequently signed a letter calling on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pause the war.
“I’m not a policymaker or military strategist, nor am I privy to the reasoning behind these decisions. What I do know is that past agreements, including the last one that was brokered as a result of the tremendous efforts of the Trump administration, led to the release of hostages, whereas military pressure puts them at risk,” said Moshe Lavi, whose brother-in-law Omri Miran is still held in Gaza.
“However, that pressure is sometimes necessary – if truly used as a last resort and after all options are exhausted,” he said.
Since the resumption of the war, the country has been rocked by anti-government demonstrations calling for the end of hostilities and denouncing Netanyahu’s efforts to oust Shin Bet head Ronen Bar and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.
“The frustration you see in Israel stems from the trust gap between the families – and much of the public – and the government,” Lavi said.
“I hope the decision to resume the fighting wasn’t a political act but a well-thought strategic decision, as the consequences to our loved ones in captivity, and to our national ethos and cohesion, may be grave,” he added.
Tzvika Mor, whose son Eitan is also still being held in Gaza, welcomed the resumption of the war as the only way to free hostages. Mor co-founded the Tikva Forum, which represents ten families of hostages and supports bringing about their release through military pressure.
“The first deal in November 2023 was enabled because of military pressure. Even now, in the most recent deal, US President Trump pressured Hamas. I think there is no other way and I hope that I will see my son soon,” Mor told the JC.
He said accepting Hamas’s latest offer to release dual American-Israeli citizen Edan Alexander and four deceased hostages was not an option.
“It doesn’t make sense to agree to 50 days of ceasefire in exchange for one living hostage. We want all the hostages to be released in one day,” Mor said.
He believes the demonstrations are a big mistake.
“Our enemies see all our activities and the price they will ask for the return of our loved ones will continue to increase,” Mor said.
Hanna Cohen, the aunt of murdered hostage Inbar Haiman, understood the rationale for returning to full-blown war. “I understand it is limited fighting, not at full intensity. I do not see any other option,” she said.
“We already languished in darkness for three weeks without the release of the hostages. I want to believe that this war is intended to send a warning to Hamas,” she added. Beyond the danger that war poses to living hostages in Gaza, Cohen said she fears greatly that the remains of the deceased captives might never be found.
“Inbar was a young girl; the only girl remaining there. We want her back and we are very afraid that she could go missing. We are not sleeping at night,” she said.
“I want to believe that soon we will see Hamas return to the negotiation table and that they will accept [US special envoy Steve] Witkoff’s outline and release them all,” she continued. “It’s not easy to lose a child and not have them back for proper burial.”
Shani Nattiv’s husband Neil, a reservist who has served for 270 days since October 7, may be returning to the front line of the war. The couple live in Raanana with their son Itay, six, and daughter Melody, three.
“On October 7, my husband was called for reserve duty and within hours I found myself alone with two kids. We were trying to process the fear and the weight of responsibility, which was overwhelming,” said Nattiv, who worked as a secretary for a university before the war. “I couldn’t keep my job, I had to run to shelters with my kids all the time,” she said.
Nattiv co-founded the IDF Reservists Wives Forum, which lobbies the government to provide recognition, structured emotional support and financial safeguards to spouses of IDF soldiers. “During the ceasefire, we were trying to go back to our normal life. For us, it’s not the same. The entire country can go back to not being afraid of alarms, but we live with a huge weight on us because we know the next round of fighting is just around the corner.”
