Jewish groups press world not to turn away, hostages like ‘Holocaust survivors’

Jews and others worldwide recoiled after seeing televised images of Or Levy, Eli Sharabi and Ohad Ben Ami, the three hostages released by Hamas on Feb. 8 after being held captive for 491 days in the Gaza Strip.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the three men—ages 34, 52 and 56, respectively—“look like Holocaust survivors. They were in horrible condition—emaciated. It looked like something from many years ago.”

Morton A. Klein, national president of the Zionist Organization of America, said “President Trump was correct to highlight the Nazi-like treatment of Jewish hostages by the Arab Islamic terrorist group Hamas and its allies. But no one should be surprised by Hamas’s horrific abuse of the hostages. After all, its charter calls for the murder of every Jew and destruction of the Jewish state, and their textbooks, schools and imams demonize Jews and promote terrorist acts against them.”

He emphasized that “this same ugly theme is promoted by the Palestinian Authority and its leader, Mahmoud Abbas, who spends $400 million per year to pay Arabs lifetime pensions to murder Jews and names schools, streets and sports teams after Jew-killers. Until Hamas’s and the Palestinian Authority’s despicable incitement and ubiquitous Jew-hatred they have fomented ends, Nazi-like actions by many Arabs will continue, and peace will remain an impossibility.”

It was also reported that Abbas just announced a potential willingness to restructure its “pay-for-slay” program if the Trump administration were to repeal the Taylor Force Act, along with a few other conditions.

Sasha Roytman, CEO of Combat Antisemitism, thanked Trump for being “the only leader in the world with enough decency and to say the truth.”

“Thank you, Mr. President, for feeling the anguish of the people of Israel and our commitment to bring all of the hostages home,” wrote Doron Spielman, former international spokesman of the Israel Defense Forces and a senior fellow at the Herut Center.

AIPAC echoed Trump’s statement and urged the world not to turn a blind eye to the conditions of the hostages.

“Look at their faces,” the organization wrote. “Hamas abducted them. Starved them. Held them hostage in unspeakable conditions for 491 days. Or Levy, Eli Sharabi and Ohad Ben Ami are home after enduring hell in Gaza. Seventy-six hostages, including six Americans, are still in the grips of barbaric terrorists.”

“The images of Eli, Ohad and Or upon their release are deeply distressing,” wrote Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee. “Starved and tortured by Hamas terrorists. This is a race against time. Every hostage must come home. Now.”