Hostages freed from Gaza meet with Pope Francis

A delegation of former hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and their relatives met Thursday with Pope Francis and expressed hope that the incoming and outgoing US administrations would work together to bring the remaining hostages home The freed hostages included Yelena Troufanov who was released last November but whose son Sasha remains in Gaza and appeared in a video released Wednesday by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad groupYou see in the picture how my child has changed over the course of this year Yelena Troufanov told a news conference in Rome after the papal audience I am very worried about his condition I see that he is not in a good mental state and not in a good physical stateShe and the other former hostages and relatives renewed their calls for a deal to bring the remaining hostages home especially with winter approaching They said they hoped the incoming Trump administration would work with the outgoing Biden administration to push the process forwardThe war started when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct 7 2023 killing 1200 people and kidnapping 250 with dozens still in Gaza Israels subsequent campaign has killed more than 43000 people according to Gaza health officials whose count doesnt distinguish between civilians and fighters though they say more than half of the dead are women and childrenThe war has ignited a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza driven Israel into increasing international isolation with two world courts examining charges of war crimes and had sparked a wave of protests on American campuses that have fuelled debate over the US role as Israels key military and diplomatic supporterWe hope that with the election of Trump together with Biden this is not about left and right we hope that Biden and Trump work together now to get the hostages back before the winter said Sharone Lifshitz who accompanied her mother Yocheved Lifshitz to the audienceHer mother a longtime peace activist was released Oct 23 2023 but her father Oded remains in Gaza Sharone Lifshitz who wasnt kidnapped thanked Francis for meeting with the delegation and said that he promised to pray for each of the hostages still being heldIsrael says that Hamas is holding about 65 hostages and the remains of about 35 others either killed on Oct 7 2023 or who died in captivityThe pope is a few years older than my father Both of them are men who spent a lifetime making this world a place that cares for the weak that cares for each other that reaches across religions and creeds to make it a place where humans real humans can live in dignity she saidLouis Har an ArgentineIsraeli who was freed during an Israeli army raid in Rafah last February said that he never imagined that he would meet the Argentine pope He wept at one point recounting his ordeal to reporters gathered at the Rome headquarters of Italys Jewish communities He said that he had given the pope a necklace with a charm signifying hopeI felt his sincerity his care and that we didnt come in vain he said There is someone listening to us I hope that his prayers and his message will reach the whole world because he has an impact on the whole worldFrancis has tried to strike a balance in his comments on the Hamas attack in 2023 and the Israeli response and conflicts in Gaza and southern Lebanon that have ensued He has called for an immediate ceasefire for the release of hostages and for humanitarian aid to get to GazaHe has also suggested that Israels actions in Gaza and southern Lebanon are disproportionate and immoral and says that he calls a Catholic parish in Gaza every day to check in on the people it is sheltering He has met twice before with relatives of the hostages and once with Palestinians whose families were affected by Israels operations in GazaThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever