10/13/2025
Living Hostages Return Home
Relief. Hope. Healing.
For 738 days, 48 innocent people kidnapped from Israel have been held in captivity by Hamas terrorists under horrific conditions.
Through 18 Jewish holidays and 105 Shabbat dinners, Jewish families in Israel and around the world have lived with empty chairs at our tables and deep fractures in our hearts.
Each of those 1 million minutes has been filled with anguish and uncertainty — wondering whether the hostages would live or die and knowing that the Jewish people were not whole without them.
For two years, we have prayed, rallied, and spoken the hostages’ names. We have stood with their families and witnessed the resilience of the Israeli people and the Jewish community.
Today, we rejoice as the 20 surviving hostages come home to their loved ones — filling the empty chairs at our tables and beginning to mend our broken hearts. The Jewish Federation of Cleveland and Jews everywhere celebrate this long-awaited moment of relief and joy, standing in solidarity with the families and the people of Israel.
Yet our work is not done.
Twenty-eight precious souls remain in Gaza. Their families deserve the peace of mind and dignity that come only when their loved ones are laid to rest at home. We call for the immediate return of all 28 hostages’ bodies — now.
We are deeply grateful to the president and all who worked tirelessly to make this moment possible. And we continue to pray for the day when neighbors can live side by side in peace.
We will never forget the pain and horror brought by Hamas on and since October 7, 2023. We grieve for all who were lost. And now, we begin the long road of healing, recovery, and renewed hope for Israel and the Jewish people.
Am Yisrael Chai!
