Trump welcomes freed Israeli hostages, praises them as heroes

U.S. President Donald Trump warmly welcomed a delegation of released hostages and family members to the White House on Thursday. In a message shared by the White House on X, he told them: “You’re not a hostage anymore … today you’re heroes.”

The delegation consisted of 26 former hostages, including 17 of the 20 captives freed three days after the Oct. 10 Gaza ceasefire that Trump brokered.

Trump handed each member of the delegation a Presidential Challenge Coin, saying, “Take these! These are super coins.”

In his remarks to the former hostages, he said, “It’s an honor to get to know all of you. I know some of you already. I know some of the previous hostages that we got out very well. We love you all and our country loves you all … You’re amazing people.”

Trump addressed captivity survivor Matan Angrest directly. “Because of his service in the IDF, Matan was subjected to severe beatings, even at times losing consciousness. Alone and under special guard, he went through hell,” the president said. “Matan never broke, and today he’s a living testimony to the toughness, heart and faith of the Jewish people. I’m telling you, you’re a great inspiration to everybody.”

Members of the delegation, supported by the Bring Them Home Now campaign, stressed that their mission would continue until the remains of the last captive are returned home to Israel for burial.

“The fight isn’t over,” the group posted on X. “We’re here in Washington, D.C. to close our own chapter, but there are families still living through the pain our families endured. This won’t be over until everyone comes home.”

Three bodies remain in Hamas custody—those of Israel Police Sgt. Maj. Ran Gvili, Dror Or and Thai citizen Sudthisak Rinthalak, who had been working in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked the Jewish state.

During the meeting, former hostages Gali and Ziv Berman presented Trump with a mezuzah recovered recently from the debris of their burned family home at Kibbutz Kfar Aza, where the twin brothers were abducted on Oct. 7.

They also handed Trump a letter thanking him for his successful efforts to free the hostages. Trump has met with hostage families several times, declaring repeatedly that bringing back all remaining captives is a top priority and an essential part of the ceasefire deal.

“This mezuzah was lovingly removed from the door of Gali’s room, in our home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, a community that suffered unthinkable horrors on Oct. 7, 2023,” the letter stated. “The mezuzah survived. Gali survived. And now, this sacred item is presented to you for helping to save his life.”

Signed by the Berman family, it concluded with a personal message to the U.S. president: “With profound respect and heartfelt thanks, we present you with a small yet powerful symbol of protection and faith, retrieved from the wreckage of tragedy, as a tribute to your work in bringing the hostages home. May it stand as an enduring testimony to courage, to faith and to the everlasting friendship between our peoples.”