RAMAT GAN, Israel: After 484 days of captivity in Gaza, Keith Siegel had many questions. Was his 97-year-old mother still alive? Which of his neighbors was killed in Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack? Why did it take so long to free him?
With minimal access to media, the dual American-Israeli citizen only learned months after he was captured that his son had survived the attack that launched the war in Gaza. He had heard that his family and others’ were advocating for hostages’ freedom. But beyond that, he knew very little about life outside his confines in Gaza.
“He really wanted to know everything as soon as possible, just to put all the question marks away and to know what happened,” said his daughter, Elan Siegel.
Hostages freed as part of a tenuous ceasefire in Gaza are confronting a flood of information about loved ones and destroyed communities, and are still figuring out their place in a changed world. Their families are grappling with how to fill them in on what they missed without potentially deepening their trauma.
Experts say it is important to be cautious.
“The information is definitely traumatic so you have to really be sensitive, careful and monitor the pace in which you expose the information,” said Einat Yehene, who heads the rehabilitation division at the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
Paraded by Hamas, then by shattered reality
For many freed captives, catching up has been excruciating.
Eli Sharabi, 52, had no exposure to media during his 16-month ordeal, according to his brother, Sharon Sharabi.
Forced to speak at a staged Hamas ceremony before his release, a gaunt Sharabi told a crowd of masked militants and journalists that he was looking forward to seeing his wife and two teenage daughters back in Israel.
Then he learned the crushing reality shortly after his arrival in Israel: all three had been killed at home during the Oct. 7 attack.
“Beyond the emotional burden and difficult experiences he faced in captivity, he had to bear this horrible loss on the first day that he left from there,” his brother told Israeli Army Radio.
Or Levy, 34, was dealt a similar blow upon being freed. That is when he learned that his wife, Einav, was killed on Oct. 7.
“For 491 days, he held onto hope that he would return to her,” his brother, Michael Levy, told reporters.
Levy was reunited with his young son, who hit key developmental milestones, like being potty trained, while his father was in captivity. “It took you a long time to come back,” the 3-year-old told his father, according to Israeli media.
Facing uncertainty even after being freed
The first person Keith Siegel asked about upon returning home was his mother, Gladys. When his wife’s eyes welled up, he immediately understood she had died, his daughter recounted.
Siegel picked up some information about his family while in captivity. Months into the war, he heard his daughter on the radio, speaking about how his son had survived Hamas’ attack. Other freed hostages have also reported hearing messages from their families through the news media.
Yarden Bibas, who was freed earlier this month, was told by his captors that his wife, Shiri, and their two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, were dead. But he was also told they were spotted in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media.
Now that he is out, he still lacks clarity. They remain in Gaza, and the Israeli government has said it has “serious concern” for their lives.
A relentless need to know more
Beyond their personal lives, freed hostages are also taking in more than a year’s worth of world events: President Donald Trump is back in the White House; Israel and Iran engaged in their first direct attacks; Israel killed the longtime chief of the militant group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah.
Keith Siegel’s family is sharing information sparingly, as one might with a child. “You answer only what he asks and not more than that,” his daughter, Elan, said.
But the questions are relentless.
Siegel wanted to know what happened to his community of Kfar Aza. Was anyone watering the plants? Who was killed in Hamas’ attack?
“We asked him if he’s sure that he’s ready. And he said ‘yes,’ that he just wants to know. So I read him the list of 64 people” who were killed, his daughter said. She said his reaction to the news has been muted because “it’s almost like he forgot how to feel” while in captivity.
Siegel’s photo has been a mainstay at protests and on banners highlighting the plight of hostages, making him recognizable across Israel. Ahead of his release, dozens of Israelis posted videos of themselves on social media making his favorite pancake recipe.
Siegel’s wife, Aviva, who was freed from captivity in the early weeks of the war, prepared a book for him that includes notes from the important figures she had lobbied on his behalf — from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to former US President Joe Biden.
Siegel was especially befuddled by the revelation that world leaders knew about his captivity.
His daughter, Elan, recalled him saying: “If they knew, how can it be that I was there for so long?”
Hostages freed from Gaza painfully piece together a changed world
https://arab.news/vunn6
Hostages freed from Gaza painfully piece together a changed world
- Hostages freed as part of a tenuous ceasefire in Gaza are confronting a flood of information about loved ones and destroyed communities
- Their families are grappling with how to fill them in on what they missed without potentially deepening their trauma
Netanyahu government approves firing of Shin Bet head amid protests
- Netanyahu had said he had lost confidence in Shin Bet head
- Police fire water cannon, make arrests after scuffles
Netanyahu said this week he had lost confidence in Ronen Bar, who has led Shin Bet since 2021, and intended to dismiss him.
Bar did not attend the cabinet meeting but in a letter sent to ministers said the process around his firing did not comply with rules and his dismissal was predicated on baseless claims.
Late on Thursday, police fired water cannon and made numerous arrests as scuffles broke out during the protests in Tel Aviv and close to the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem, where police said dozens of protesters tried to break through security cordons.
Over the past three days, demonstrators protesting the move to sack Bar have joined forces with protesters angry at the decision to resume fighting in Gaza, breaking a two-month-old ceasefire, while 59 Israeli hostages remain in the Palestinian enclave.
“We’re very, very worried that our country is becoming a dictatorship,” Rinat Hadashi, 59, said in Jerusalem. “They’re abandoning our hostages, they’re neglecting all the important things for this country.”
The decision followed months of tension between Bar and Netanyahu over a corruption investigation into allegations that a number of aides in Netanyahu’s office were offered bribes by figures connected with Qatar.
Netanyahu has dismissed the accusation as a politically motivated attempt to unseat him, but his critics have accused him of undermining the institutions underpinning Israel’s democracy by seeking Bar’s removal.
In his letter to the government, Bar said the decision to fire him was “entirely tainted by ... conflicts of interest” and driven by “completely different, extraneous and fundamentally unacceptable motives.”
He had already announced that he intended to step down early to take responsibility for the intelligence lapses that failed to prevent the attack on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7, 2023.
DEEP DIVISIONS
The angry scenes on Thursday highlighted divisions that have deepened since Netanyahu returned to power as head of a right-wing coalition at the end of 2022.
Even before the war in Gaza, tens of thousands of Israelis were joining regular demonstrations protesting a government drive to curb the power of the judiciary that critics saw as an assault on Israeli democracy but which the government said was needed to limit judicial overreach.
On Thursday Yair Golan, a former deputy chief of staff in the military who now leads the opposition Democrats party, was pushed to the ground during a scuffle, drawing condemnation and calls for an investigation by other opposition politicians.
Former Defense Minister Benny Gantz said the clashes were a direct result of divisions caused by “an extremist government that has lost its grip.”
In Tel Aviv, demonstrators rallied outside the Kirya military headquarters complex as ministers met to formally approve the dismissal of Bar.
Since the start of the war, there have also been regular protests by families and supporters of hostages seized by Hamas during the October 7 attack that have sometimes echoed the criticisms of the government.
With the resumption of Israel’s campaign in Gaza, the fate of 59 hostages, as many as 24 of whom are still believed to be alive, remains unclear and protesters said a return to war could see them either killed by their captors or accidentally by Israeli bombardments.
“This is not an outcome the Israeli people can accept,” The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, a group representing hostage families, said in a statement.
UN official bemoans ‘endless’ suffering in Gaza after renewed Israeli strikes
- “We are fearing that the worst is yet to come,” UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini wrote on X
- Israeli strikes since Tuesday have killed at least 504, including children, says Gaza civil defense agency
JERUSALEM: The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said Thursday there were fears “the worst is yet to come” in Gaza, denouncing “endless” suffering after Israel renewed deadly air and ground operations.
“Israeli Forces bombardment continues from air & sea for the third day,” Philippe Lazzarini wrote on X.
“We are fearing that the worst is yet to come given the ongoing ground invasion separating the north from the south.”
Israel announced renewed ground operations in Gaza on Wednesday and issued what it called a “last warning” to residents of the territory to return hostages and remove Hamas from power.
Heavy air strikes began pounding Gaza early on Tuesday, killing at least 504 people including more than 190 children, according to the civil defense agency in the Hamas-run territory.
Gaza rescuers said at least 10 more people were killed in a pre-dawn bombing near Khan Yunis on Thursday.
“Under our daily watch, people in Gaza are again & again going through their worst nightmare,” Lazzarini wrote, condemning an “endless unleashing of the most inhumane ordeals.”
The Israeli army said on Thursday it had banned traffic on the Palestinian territory’s main north-to-south artery.
“Evacuation orders forcing people to flee were issued impacting tens of thousands of people,” Lazzarini said, adding that “the vast majority have been already displaced, treated like ‘pinballs’ since the war began nearly 1.5 years ago.”
Israel’s renewed offensive shattered a relative calm in Gaza that had pervaded since a fragile truce took hold in mid-January.
The UNRWA chief also decried Israel’s blockade on humanitarian aid entering Gaza which has been in place since early March.
“No time left, we need now: a renewal of the ceasefire, a dignified release of all the hostages in Gaza, an unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid & commercial supplies,” he said.
The first stage of the Gaza ceasefire, which largely halted more than 15 months of fighting, expired early this month amid deadlock over next steps.
Israel rejected negotiations for a promised second stage, calling instead for the return of all of its remaining hostages under an extended first stage.
That would have meant delaying talks on a lasting ceasefire, and was rejected by Hamas as an attempt to renegotiate the original deal.
Jordan’s Senate speaker criticizes Western ‘double standards’ on democracy at Strasbourg conference
- Faisal Al-Fayez stresses democracy is shared responsibility
STRASBOURG: Jordan’s Senate Speaker Faisal Al-Fayez on Thursday accused Western nations of adopting “double standards” on democracy and public freedoms, arguing that true democratic values required consistency and commitment to human rights.
Speaking at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France, Al-Fayez stressed that democracy was a shared responsibility that upheld citizens’ rights, equality, and social justice. However, he warned that some Western nations failed to apply these principles uniformly.
“The reality confirms that the West has begun to adopt a policy of double standards regarding issues of public freedoms and democratic practice,” he said.
The two-day conference is set to cover a range of topics, including the protection of democracy, freedom of expression, and the impact of current global political and security challenges.
Al-Fayez argued that sustaining democracy required political and security stability, as well as a rejection of selective approaches to human rights. He called for a commitment to defending international organizations and institutions that uphold justice, rather than interfering in their principles for political gain.
He said: “We must implement international legitimacy resolutions pertaining to people’s rights to freedom and independence, reject racism and sectarianism, and respect minorities’ rights while also working to strengthen common cultural and civilizational denominators among peoples.”
Al-Fayez also addressed the impact of the Israeli occupation on Palestinians, criticizing what he described as Western hypocrisy in dealing with human rights violations.
He added: “The Palestinian people have endured nearly eight decades of suffering under Israeli occupation, and since Oct. 7, 2023, they have been the target of the most horrific acts of aggression by the Israeli occupation state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. Tens of thousands of martyrs and wounded, primarily women and children, have died as a result of this aggression.”
Additionally, Al-Fayez voiced concerns over the role of social media in amplifying disinformation, hate speech, and extremism. He warned that while these platforms were initially intended to promote public freedoms, they have instead exacerbated societal divisions, leading to political instability in various countries.
He said: “Social media, which is meant to support freedom of expression, freedom of publication, and public freedoms, has regrettably added to the problems that democracy faces. It has encouraged hate speech, bigotry, violence, religious and ethnic strife, and the use of disinformation campaigns to rig elections and their results.”
He highlighted growing discontent with democratic institutions due to economic and technological disparities between the Global North and South, as well as widening social and economic inequalities.
He added: “All of these factors have put democracy and its future through a difficult test.”
Israel’s president says worried over steps taken by Netanyahu’s government
- “It is impossible not to be deeply troubled by the harsh reality unfolding before our eyes,” Herzog said
- “It is unthinkable to resume fighting while still pursuing the sacred mission of bringing our hostages home”
JERUSALEM: Israel’s President Isaac Herzog on Thursday expressed concern over steps being taken by the government, hours before the cabinet was due to fire the domestic security chief in an unprecedented move.
“It is impossible not to be deeply troubled by the harsh reality unfolding before our eyes,” Herzog said in a video statement, stopping short of mentioning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by name.
Earlier this week, Netanyahu announced a return to the war in Gaza, sending in ground troops, after talks on extending the truce with Palestinian militant group Hamas reached an impasse.
“It is unthinkable to resume fighting while still pursuing the sacred mission of bringing our hostages home,” said Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial.
His unusual statement also comes ahead of a state budget vote expected late this month, in which the government proposes raising taxes and cutting education and health funding while ramping up spending in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish sector — a plan that has drawn criticism as many ultra-Orthodox do not serve in the army.
“Thousands of reserve duty call-ups have recently been issued, and it is inconceivable to send our sons to the front while simultaneously advancing divisive and controversial initiatives that create deep rifts within our nation,” Herzog said.
Calling on decision-makers to “carefully weigh every step and assess whether it strengthens national resilience,” the president criticized the decision to resume fighting in Gaza while Israeli hostages, including some who are known to be alive, remain in Gaza.
On Thursday, thousands of Israelis braved the rain and plunging temperatures in Jerusalem to protest the decision to return to war which they see as forsaking the hostages.
The protesters also voiced opposition to Netanyahu’s bid to oust Ronen Bar, head of the Shin Bet internal security agency.
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the government’s legal adviser threatened by a separate bid to remove her from her watchdog role, said the plan to dismiss Bar was likely illegal.
Bar was meant to end his tenure only next year, and if approved by the government, he would become the first Shin Bet chief in Israel’s history to be dismissed early.
“Unfortunately, we are witnessing a series of unilateral actions, and I am deeply concerned about their impact on our national resilience,” Herzog said, calling on the government to take note of the thousands protesting.
Qatar helps in release of US citizen from Taliban’s detention in Afghanistan
- George Glezmann arrived in Doha on Thursday
- Release of US prisoner described as ‘gesture of goodwill’
LONDON: Qatar facilitated on Thursday the release of a US citizen in Afghanistan who had been in detention since December 2022.
George Glezmann is the third US citizen to be released by the Taliban government since January. The Taliban’s intelligence agency detained Glezmann, an airline mechanic from Atlanta, in December 2022.
He arrived in Doha on Thursday and will depart for his home country later, the Qatar News Agency reported. A date was not specified.
The Taliban government’s release of the detainee was a “gesture of goodwill,” reflecting its willingness to engage in dialogue with the international community, the QNA added.
The Taliban have been in control of Afghanistan since the summer of 2021, following the withdrawal of US and Western troops from the Central Asian country.
Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Al-Khulaifi said that cooperation with the mediation process involving the US and the “Afghan caretaker government” had led to the release of Glezmann.
He added that Qatar was dedicated to mediation efforts to find peaceful solutions to conflicts, disputes, and complex international issues.
Qatar has taken a leading role in mediating during some of the most contentious conflicts, including its recent efforts to help end the Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip and to facilitate the release of Israeli captives held by the militant group Hamas.
