JCRC Statement
June 9, 2024
The following is a statement from Ron Halber, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Greater Washington, on the military rescue of four hostages held by Hamas since October 7th.
“We are overjoyed that Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv have been rescued and returned safely to Israel. The heroic actions taken by members of the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet are a reminder for the world that Israel fights for freedom, while Hamas clings to terrorism.
While we celebrate this news, our hearts are still with the more than 120 innocent people who remain in captivity ever since Hamas’ terrorist attack on October 7. We pray that they, too, will soon be reunited with their families who have been living a nightmare for the past eight months.
As we offer our prayers, we also demand action. A peace proposal put forward by Israel would eventually free the remaining hostages and ultimately reconstruct the Gaza strip without Hamas in power. The United States and other members of the international community support this proposal. We urge the Qatari government — whose political and financial leverage over Hamas is unmatched — to use every bit of that leverage to get Hamas to take the deal now.
Noa, Almog, Andrew, and Shlomi embody the strength and resilience of the Israeli people and Jews across the world.”