Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff met with the families of hostages in Israel on Saturday, a day after spending time in Gaza.
Hostage families said Mr. Wikoff listened to what they had to say but didn’t share plans to get the hostages out.
“I listened for two hours. With all due respect to Witkoff, he expressed sympathy, believed this was important to us and showed interest in listening to all the stories,” said Michel Illouz, father of Guy Illouz, who was murdered in Hamas captivity in Gaza after the terrorist raid of Oct. 7, 2023.
“But I didn’t hear anything new from him,” he said. “I heard that there was pressure from the Americans to end this operation, but we didn’t hear anything practical.”
He added that Mr. Witkoff didn’t say when the situation could be solved. And when they asked about a deadline, they got “no answers.”
Mr. Witkoff told the families that President Trump wants to “shift” the original plan of only a partial and phased ceasefire deal to instead reach a full-fledged one, Axios reported.
“President Trump now believes that everybody ought to come home at once — no piecemeal deals. That doesn’t work,” Mr. Witkoff said. “Now we have to get all the 20 [live hostages] at the same time. … We think that we have to shift this negotiation to all or nothing so that everybody comes home. We think it is going to be successful, and we have a plan around it.”
He met with dozens of families for two hours in Tel Aviv.
Mr. Witkoff said last week that ceasefire talks have ceased due to “the latest response from Hamas, which clearly shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza.”
He added, “While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith. We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza. It is a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way. We are resolute in seeking an end to this conflict and a permanent peace in Gaza.”
Mr. Trump has been zeroing in on the hunger crisis in Gaza, sending Mr. Witkoff and Israel Ambassador Mike Huckabee to the Palestinian enclave this week.
On Friday, “we spent over five hours inside Gaza — level setting the facts on the ground, assessing conditions and meeting with [the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation] and other agencies,” Mr. Wikoff wrote on X. “The purpose of the visit was to give @POTUS a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this week that there was no starvation in Gaza, a claim Mr. Trump said he disagreed with.
The crisis in Gaza has been escalating, with Israel and the terrorist group blaming each other for shortages of food and other necessities.
Mr. Trump posted Thursday on Truth Social that the fastest way to solve the situation “is for Hamas to SURRENDER AND RELEASE THE HOSTAGES!!!”
This report was compiled in part from wire services.
