Israel – Jewish News Syndicate, March 05, 2025
An anticipated meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and a delegation of eight freed Israeli hostages finally took place on Wednesday afternoon.
The White House released and then deleted footage of the unpublicized Oval Office meeting, with the freed hostage standing beside Trump’s desk. At the end of the conversation, Trump shook hands with each of the eight. (JNS sought comment from the White House about why the video was deleted.)
“My family and I, myself—we believe you’ve been sent by God to release us,” Omer Shem Tov told the president. “You really helped. You have the power to do it.”
Naama Levy told Trump that “you were our hope, and now you’re the hope of the rest of the hostages.”
“So, you didn’t think until I came along that you’re going to get out?” Trump asked.
The hostages answered “no” emphatically, seemingly in unison.
“Once you were elected, we heard that you want to do everything to make a deal as soon as possible,” Levy said.
Trump responded, “Well, we said ‘you better let them out.’ Something happened. We’re going to get the rest of them. We’re working on it very hard.”
The delegation consisted of Eli Sharabi, Doron Steinbrecher, Keith Siegel, Aviva Siegel, Levy, Shem Tov, Iair Horn and Noa Argamani. The group reportedly met with other U.S. administration officials, though neither the White House nor the National Security Council would confirm details.
“Today, President Trump took time to meet with eight of the released hostages from Gaza,” the White House stated. “The president listened intently to their heartbreaking stories. The hostages thanked President Trump for his steadfast efforts to bring all of the hostages home.”
The delegation presented Trump with a plaque—a gift of the Hostage Aid Worldwide and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum—addressed to him that states, in English and Hebrew, that “whoever saves one life saves the world entire.” (The Hebrew is a paraphrase of a statement in the Mishnah.)
