Three Hostages Are Home, 94 Still Need Saving

Israel continues to rejoice at the freedom of three of its daughters, former hostages Doron Steinbrecher, Emily Damari and Romi Gonen. The army has released video footage capturing the emotional moment when the three women first saw their mothers and FaceTimed their families, just shortly after their 15 months of captivity in Gaza ended.

A friend of freed hostage Emily Damari described their first moments together a little later.

Gal Kubani shared excitedly, “We hugged her. We cried.  We were moved. We shouted and screamed. Seeing her standing like this was the most exciting thing in the world - and fun.”

Mandy Damari, Emily’s mother, also praised her daughter, saying, “I’m delighted to be able to tell you that Emily is in high spirits and on the road to recovery. As you would have seen last night, she’s an amazingly strong and resilient young woman.”

In Tel Aviv, Israelis gathered at Hostages Square to celebrate the return of those freed but also to remember those still in captivity.

As Yafa Twito, Tel Aviv resident declared, "And to think of each one as if it were my boy, my girl, my mother, my father. We will not rest and will not be silent until everyone returns."

Ashley Waxman Bakshi, cousin of hostage Agam Berger, stated, "Everybody needs to remember that, yes, our three beautiful girls came home yesterday, but we have 94 more that need to come home. And we won't stop until they all do."

Meanwhile, in Gaza, Hamas, despite being bombarded and hunted for 15 months by Israeli forces, quickly re-emerged from its hiding places as the ceasefire took effect, with its police and fighters quickly taking back control of the streets.

As for the citizens of Gaza, many are returning to their homes to find nothing but rubble.

Ayad Al-Tawil, a displaced Palestinian, shared, "I came to our house to check on it. I found the house completely destroyed and unfit for living. We have no other place to go, so I will have to set up a tent on top of the rubble of my house and live in it."

After his inauguration in Washington, President Trump met with former hostages and family members of those still held in captivity.

Referring to the hostages, Trump said, "So, now the work begins,” he noted, “We won. But now the work begins. We have to bring them home."

Trump has expressed pessimism that Hamas and Israel will get through all three stages of the ceasefire without renewed fighting. However, he remains optimistic that Saudi Arabia may join the Abraham Accords, forging a historic peace agreement with Israel.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu extended his congratulations to President Trump and expressed hopes for what America and Israel can achieve together.

“I’m confident that we will complete the defeat of Iran’s terror axis and usher in a new era of peace and prosperity for our region,” Netanyahu stated.

He continued, “I look forward to working with you to return the remaining hostages, to destroy Hamas’ military capabilities and end its political rule in Gaza, and to ensure that Gaza never again poses a threat to Israel.”