The Hostages Families Forum denounced the IDF’s resumption of intense strikes on the Gaza Strip rather than reaching a deal as “missing an opportunity,” they said in a statement on Friday morning.
“The families of the hostages woke up this morning with heavy hearts and great concern in light of reports of intensified attacks in the Gaza Strip and the imminent end of President Trump’s visit to the region,” the statement read.
“Instead of returning all the hostages and being part of a broad regional initiative to end the war, Israel will find itself isolated and sinking in the Gaza quagmire. Missing this historic opportunity is a resounding Israeli failure,” they added.
“The effort to sabotage the proposals currently on the table will be remembered with contempt forever. We are in dramatic hours—hours in which the future of our loved ones, the future of Israeli society, and the future of the Middle East will be determined,” the statement continued.
“We urgently implore the Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] and the President of the United States [Donald Trump] to reach a breakthrough. Time is running out, the world is watching, and history will remember,” they concluded.
Meanwhile, the Tikva (Hope) Forum, a more hawkish group that represents some family members of hostages, commented that the decision to intensify airstrikes was “correct.”
“The military pressure must be much stronger, with high intensity and coordinated with diplomatic pressure, a complete siege, cutting off water and electricity, and a true decisive outcome. The justification for the operational activity is solely for the release of all our hostages together, without selection and without pauses,” they added.
“This time, we must achieve a decisive victory. We must win. We must bring them all back home,” the Tikva Forum concluded.
These statements come as the IDF intensifies its strikes in Gaza and calling up additional reservists for broader military operations in recent weeks.
IDF intensifies strikes on Gaza
The Israel Air Force targeted Beit Lahiya and Jabalya in northern Gaza with heavy airstrikes on Thursday overnight, The Jerusalem Post learned.
The IAF also conducted airstrikes across the Gaza Strip throughout the day on Thursday, including in Jabalya and eastern Khan Yunis, as well as other locations, Army Radio reported on Thursday afternoon.
The IDF on Tuesday attempted to assassinate Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar in a strike on the European Hospital in Khan Yunis in Gaza.
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.
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