Noam Dan, a relative of Israeli hostage Ofer Kalderon, who has spent more than 120 days in Hamas captivity, caused a stir on Saturday night when she was interviewed on Channel 12 News. During the conversation, interviewer Arad Nir asked her, "Do you think this is a frustrating situation where we are faced with someone devoid of emotions and humanity, making it difficult to reach [hostage] agreements with them?"
Noam Dan replied, "Are you referring to [Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya] Sinwar or Bibi [Netanyahu]?"
When Arad confirmed he was indeed referring to the Hamas leader responsible for the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, Dan responded, "Oh, I didn't understand, because Bibi Netanyahu also meets all these definitions."
ערד ניר מראיין ב-12 את נעם דן, בת דודתו של עופר קלדרון שנחטף לעזהערד: את חושבת שמדובר פשוט במצב מתסכל שבו ניצב מולנו אדם נטול רגשות, נטול ערכים, נטול אנושיות, שקשה להגיע איתו להסכמות?נעם: אנחנו מדברים עכשיו על סינואר או על ביבי נתניהו?ערד: דיברתי על סינוארנעם: אה, לא… pic.twitter.com/eBIZNw720i
— Sagi Bin Nun שגיא בן נון (@sagibi) February 3, 2024
Noam Dan's words stirred up a storm on social media: many Netanyahu supporters attacked Dan's words, though they also received a great deal of support, with many saying Dan was "amazing and correct." Noam Dan herself tweeted about the storm: "What could I say? It's a painful truth. Two politicians who only think about their political survival."
Hostages' relatives take action against govt's lack of action
A group of relatives of Israelis held hostage stormed a Knesset Finance Committee session in Jerusalem in late January, demanding that the lawmakers do more to try to free their loved ones.
At the committee meeting, one woman held up pictures of three family members. "Just one I'd like to get back alive, one out of three!" the protester cried after pushing into the Knesset Finance Committee discussion. Other protesters, clad in black T-shirts, held up signs reading: "You will not sit here while they die there."
Relatives of hostages also joined Israeli protestors, and IDF reservists spent several days at the end of January blocking the Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip to demonstrate against humanitarian aid trucks crossing the border into Gaza. The group's actions drew international criticism from human rights groups at a time when Israel has faced accusations of war crimes.