Moved almost to tears, three of US President Donald Trump’s closest confidants stood together on Saturday night on the stage at Hostages Square – a central Tel Aviv plaza that, since the October 7, 2023 Hamas massacre, has become the beating heart of weekly demonstrations calling for the release of Israelis still held captive in Gaza and, increasingly, for an end to the war.
And when they spoke to the vast and appreciative crowd, US envoy Steve Witkoff, the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and his wife, the president’s daughter Ivanka Trump, proved they can do more than negotiate a breakthrough agreement with a terror organization: they know how to move hearts, speak authentically and connect with Israelis’ most basic sentiments.
Witkoff and Kushner are not Israeli citizens. But both are American Jews who grew up in Jewish neighborhoods and schools on the East Coast and visited Israel in their youth, embodying the deep and enduring bond between American Jewry and Israel. That connection was searingly evident in their speeches.
Kushner recalled how he watched the horrifying videos of the October 7 invasion and slaughter while he was supposed to be celebrating at a wedding in Colorado, went back to his hotel room and cried all night.
Witkoff spoke of his emotional connection as a father who lost a son to drug addiction, and of his empathy with the hostages’ families, who have been at the forefront of the nation’s grief and resilience.
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It was Witkoff’s third visit to Hostages Square in less than a year, and that compares with not a single visit by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or most of his ministers.
Netanyahu, who spends long hours just across the street at the Kirya – Israel’s central military headquarters that also houses the Defense Ministry and serves as the meeting place of the security cabinet – never found it in his heart to connect with the place that most symbolizes the years of war and the public’s longing for resolution.
The hostages’ families have described many times their connection with Witkoff, saying he was available to them on his cellphone 24/7. He personally answered every family member, identified with their pain, and devoted himself fully to ending the human tragedy that has shaken Israel and is now approaching its denouement.
Indeed, both Biden and Trump administration officials involved with hostage release negotiations have been, above all, humane and direct, treating each family member as an individual, demonstrating heartfelt empathy. All of this stood in stark contrast to the often cold, dismissive and humiliating indifference of much of Israel’s political leadership.
(From left) Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff meet with families of hostages in Tel Aviv on October 11, 2025. (Paulina Patimer / Hostages Families Forum)
And on Saturday night, the Americans were greeted with warmth and admiration from the crowds. Mentions of Netanyahu and his government were met with jeers.
But Witkoff’s and Kushner’s speeches in the square were not just about empathy; they also carried a vision: peace is necessary for the entire Middle East.
They made it clear that the agreement that is intended to see all remaining 48 hostages – 20 alive and 28 dead – freed by Monday, was achieved with the vital involvement of Arab and Muslim nations. The two conveyed the message that at least some of the region’s Arab leaders are tired of war and want to see change, the abandonment of hatred and a march toward a better future.
Israelis always insist that it’s the Muslims who hate and fight Jews, and Kushner highlighted “the barbarism of the enemy” on October 7. But the two Americans sought to send a message in the other direction as well: Israelis too must stop hating and fighting – and start talking about peace. “You’ve prayed, you’ve persevered, and you’ve shown the world that peace is not weakness,” Witkoff said, in remarks directed to the Israeli people. “It is the highest form of strength.”
Several Arab and Muslim leaders “played a critical and integral role” in the deal, Witkoff went on: “Each of those Arab friends and partners of ours, each of them comes from nations that chose reconciliation over resentment. Thank you for showing that the future of this region can be built not on the ashes of old hatred, but on the promise of shared hope.”
“As we close this chapter,” urged Kushner, “let’s learn from the challenges and the pain of the last few years, and let’s do our best to make Israel, to make the region, to make the world as peaceful, to build bridges of understanding, to eliminate hatred in ourselves, hatred for others, and to really lead with love and understanding.”
Unprecedented moment in Israel’s history
More than anything, the Hostages Square event highlighted Israel’s leadership vacuum.
In the era of a hardline right-wing government – the first entirely right-wing coalition in Israel’s history – under whose watch the October 7 Hamas attacks, the deadliest assault on Jews since the Holocaust, took place, representatives of the world’s strongest power came to the Middle East’s strongest country to restore order.
Jared Kushner speaks at the weekly rally at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, October 11, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
They dragged Netanyahu toward agreeing to an end to the war — as stated in the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement, signed by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer but not yet ratified by the government. They forced him into a hostage deal – insisting on the release of all hostages at once rather than in phases. And they told him outright that they would not support West Bank and Gaza annexation fantasies meant to rescue him from political trouble.
They sat in on the cabinet meeting that convened to approve the deal they brokered between Israel and Hamas, spoke at Hostages Square, and most importantly, saved the lives of 20 Israelis. It is an unprecedented moment in Israel’s history.
Their comforting presence, their genuine admiration for the Israeli people’s strength, and their salute to Israel’s soldiers in their speeches on Saturday were moments of integrity and the underlining of values. Their words, steeped in love for Israel’s citizens, filled the leadership void that left the public orphaned through two painful, bloody years.
Witkoff tried to praise Netanyahu at an event in Tel Aviv…
but the crowd booed so loudly he couldn’t even finish his sentence. pic.twitter.com/ecGi0evcET
— Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) October 11, 2025
The crowd responded accordingly, booing protractedly at the mention of Netanyahu, expressing its frustration with a prime minister they felt has abandoned them.
Those politicians and public figures who have rushed to condemn the booing are precisely those who never bothered to help the hostages’ families, who haven’t been to Hostages Square since the start of the war, and who don’t understand the authentic rage of vast segments of the people. Netanyahu’s and his associates’ sense of insult is yet another example of their disconnect from the public.
Since Witkoff had already visited the square several times, he probably knew what to expect when he mentioned Netanyahu’s name. He reacted with an awkward laugh, but wasn’t surprised. Kushner and Ivanka Trump, by contrast, didn’t mention Netanyahu at all.
The trio’s appearance in the square also aligned with Trump’s current sentiment. In recent days, he has tweeted and shared numerous videos showing Israelis expressing support for him at rallies across the country.
Trump made it clear – over Netanyahu’s head and against his policy of downplaying and denigrating the demonstrations against him – that he sees, hears and listens to the Israeli public, which is weary of war.
Incredible video sent by one of the Israeli hostage families with such heartfelt appreciation to President Trump. Must watch!???? pic.twitter.com/eFm2vAodM9
— Mike Waltz (@michaelgwaltz) October 9, 2025
Trump’s officials understand this, too. Over the weekend, US Ambassador to the United Nations and Trump ally Mike Waltz posted on X a well-produced video, which compiles all the protests, demonstrations and pleas from Israelis calling for direct help from Trump.
Finally, the booing of Netanyahu at Hostages Square also indirectly connects to remarks the president made in a phone interview on “Hannity” on Fox News a few days earlier.
Trump told the host about the conversation he had with Netanyahu immediately after the Israeli cabinet approved the Gaza ceasefire and the framework for releasing all the hostages in exchange for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 life-termers.
Netanyahu, Trump recounted, told him: “I can’t believe it. Everybody is liking me now,” referring to world leaders.
“And I said,” Trump continued, “more importantly, they are loving Israel again.”
