Israel ended its ceasefire with Hamas and renewed its air and ground war earlier this month. At the beginning of March it cut off all supplies of food, fuel, medicine and humanitarian aid to the territory’s roughly 2 million Palestinians to pressure Hamas to a more immediate release of hostages taken by the terrorists during their massacre of more than 1200 Israeli men, women and children in October of 2023.
Meanwhile, a former Israeli hostage who learned upon his release that his wife and two young children were killed in captivity in Gaza called on U.S. President Donald Trump to bring an end to the war in Gaza.
In his first media interview since being freed in a ceasefire last month, Yarden Bibas told CBS’ 60 Minutes on Sunday that Trump was “the only one” who can convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas to halt the renewed fighting.
He said as a hostage, as he was held in Hamas’ underground tunnels, Israeli strikes were terrifying. “You’re afraid for your life,” he said. “Everything could collapse at any moment.” He said his captors, who had taunted him over his family’s fate, told him “you’ll get a new wife. New kids. Better wife. Better kids.”
“Please stop the war and help bring all the hostages back,” Bibas called on Trump.