Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has announced his upcoming trip to New York to address a special UN Security Council session he personally initiated, aiming to frame hostage-taking as a dangerous global phenomenon. His mission is to rally the international community to take a firm stand against this practice. The announcement came amid a period of heightened tension and renewed concern for the remaining Israeli hostages.
Sa’ar’s public remarks were a direct response to a “sadistic propaganda campaign” by Hamas, which included the release of distressing videos showing two Israeli captives, Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski. He asserted that the apparent torture and starvation of the hostages were “deliberate and well-planned” tactics, drawing a shocking comparison to the crimes of the Nazis and ISIS.
The minister also launched a scathing critique of recent diplomatic moves, specifically the push for recognizing a Palestinian state. He argued that these actions have “assassinated the chances to reach a hostage deal” by rewarding Hamas’s terror and hardening their position. Sa’ar called these diplomatic maneuvers “immoral” and “politically foolish,” and he urged countries to cease creating a “false symmetry” between hostages and their captors.
In a separate but related critique, Sa’ar dismissed the “starvation narrative” in Gaza as a “fake propaganda campaign.” He pointed to the significant amount of aid entering the region as evidence that the claims are not a reflection of the actual situation. He also voiced his frustration with the lack of international oversight, highlighting that the Red Cross has not been allowed to visit the 50 remaining hostages, despite a prior agreement.
Minister Sa’ar Initiates UN Session to Address Hostage-Taking as Global Threat
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