Over Labor Day weekend, news sources announced the tragic deaths of six hostages, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, Eden Yerushalmi, 24, Ori Danino, 25, Alex Lobanov, 32, Carmel Gat, 40, and Almog Sarusi, 27; who were murdered by Hamas hours before being found by the Israel Defense Forces.
In the week after, the largest protest in Israel’s history took place, with estimates of 500-750,000 people taking to the streets, nearly 5% of the Israeli population. Since then, fighting has not slowed down, and a hostage deal is still far from reality.
In the 11 months since October 7, there have been several hostage and ceasefire deals on the table that have repeatedly failed in the 11th hour. Families of hostages, Israeli army leaders, Israeli security agency heads, and Israeli lawmakers, along with critics outside of Israel, have blamed Netanyahu for these failures and accused the PM of paying lip service to the hostages without actually trying to bring them home.
Pressure on Netanyahu in Israel has been increasing over the past year and increased even more after a phone call between Netanyahu and the families of hostages and former hostages was released to the press. In the call, the prime minister claimed he was not responsible for the security failures of Oct. 7 and dismissed concerns over those still held captive in Gaza, preferring instead to focus on the threat of Iran and Hezbollah. External pressure on Netanyahu has also increased. A reporter recently asked President Joe Biden if Netanyahu was doing enough to secure a hostage deal, and the president responded with a simple “no.” White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby said Hamas is negotiating in bad faith.
With all of this happening, it feels like there is little one can do here in Cincinnati, Ohio, removed from the conflict by thousands of miles but connected to the plight of the hostages and Israel through an invisible tribal bond. It is enough tragedy to make you feel helpless in the face of it. However, we can still do some things here in Cincinnati, Ohio, to support the hostages.
Here are some things you can do:
Support Bring Them Home. It has social media posts, videos, and posters. You can post on social media to keep the hostages from being forgotten and donate to their cause.
Support organizations in Israel that are helping organize protests for the hostages. While you may not agree with all of their political stances, many of these organizations are out in the streets in Israel, demonstrating for a hostage deal.
Jstreet is a left-leaning Israel advocacy group that supports a two-state solution and has been advocating for a hostage deal while also reminding the world Israel still has a right to defend itself. AIPAC, a center/center-right Israel advocacy lobby, has supported a bill that would put pressure on Qatar.
Call your representatives and ask the government to continue advocating for the return of the Hostages. And to put pressure not just on the Israeli government but on Hamas allies like Qatar, which houses and safeguards Hamas’ senior leaders.
Support Israeli journalism like The Times of Israel and Haaretz, whose coverage of the plight of the hostages and their families has been excellent and informative.
Keeping the hostages in the public consciousness is even more critical now as the situation continues to escalate between Israel and Hezbollah.
