Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is believed to be alive and among the Israeli hostages seized by Hamas in the Oct. 7 attacks, says the ceasefire deal is a way 'to end the madness in Gaza.'
Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is believed to be alive and among the Israeli hostages seized by Hamas in the Oct. 7 attacks, says the ceasefire deal is a way 'to end the madness in Gaza.'Jonathan Dekel-Chan, whose son Sagui Dekel-Chen, 35, is being held hostage in Gaza by Hamas, poses for a portrait, Wednesday, June 5, 2024, in Washington.As Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire deal, Jonathan Dekel-Chen hopes his son will be released in the coming days.
"The Biden administration did what it could, but, clearly, there was something else needed, and that something else, evidently, came from President-elect Trump," he said."We clearly saw immediately after his statement a kind of undusting of a very stagnated process that had really not moved for weeks, perhaps even months. That is clear."NPR's Leila Fadel spoke to Jonathan Dekel-Chen about his son, Sagui, and what the ceasefire could mean for his community.
Dekel-Chen: Honestly, I only know what has been published in the media in Israel and abroad. I have no way of knowing whether or not Sagui will be coming out in the first wave of releases. But I think I can speak for all Israelis that hostage number 98 is no less important than hostage No. 1 for getting them all home. And of course, by way of this hostage deal, be able to end the madness in Gaza.
And of course, our homes were completely destroyed and our way of life under Oz by the terrorists and looters that came to our kibbutz on Oct. 7.
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