A delegation of Israeli hostages released from captivity in the Gaza Strip, where they were held after being taken from communities in southern Israel by Hamas and Palestinian terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023, met with various members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday.
Reps. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.), co-chair of the Bipartisan Congressional Hostage Task Force, and Craig Goldman (R-Texas), who was filling in for Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.), the other task force co-chair, hosted the delegation, according to the Israeli embassy.
The group of visitors also included the family members of the released hostages, as well as Israeli embassy officials.
Other representatives who met with the delegation included Reps. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), Virginia Foxx (R-Va.), Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) and Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), the embassy said.
“Your pictures were on our walls and our hearts, and we continue to wear the yellow ribbon,” Schneider stated. “We are bipartisan here, and there was never a moment when we were not all committed to bringing the kidnapped people home.”
Omri Miran, one of the released hostages, stated that “when I was kidnapped from Nir Oz and separated from my family, my eldest daughter ran after me and shouted ‘Dad!’”
“Today, my daughter says ‘Dad,’ and I’m here, answering her, and that’s thanks to you,” Miran said.
The delegation is slated to visit the White House on Thursday.
