The Israeli president stated that “to finish the tragedy in Gaza, which was imposed only by Hamas, one has to get the hostages back home.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog, currently on a diplomatic visit to the Baltic states, met with Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs in Riga on Tuesday.
During joint press statements following their bilateral talks, Herzog issued an urgent appeal to the international community, urging nations not to engage in dialogue with the Hamas terrorist group until all hostages held in Gaza are released.
Emphasizing the ongoing humanitarian crisis and the plight of hostages, Herzog said, “In order to get to the day after, in order to finish the tragedy in Gaza, the terrible tragedy in Gaza, which was imposed only by Hamas, one has to get the hostages back home. Because we are dealing with a jihadist terror regime in Gaza, which we are trying to remove in order to release our hostages and make sure that our citizens on the border live in peace, we have to get the hostages back.”
Displaying images of recently publicized hostages, Herzog detailed their dire conditions and made a direct plea to the International Red Cross to deliver vital aid.