‘Bring my son back’: German minister meets Israeli hostage relatives

German Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan said the “cycle of extremism” must be broken in the Middle East as she met relatives of Israeli hostages on the second day of her trip to the region, following a brief stint in an emergency shelter.

At the meeting in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, Dani Miran – whose son Omri was abducted during the terrorist October 7, 2023, attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas – praised the efforts of the German government to support hostages, including those without German nationality.

“I don’t want to overthrow the government, I don’t want to change the world, just bring my son back,” he said.

A total of 50 hostages are still being held in the Gaza Strip, 20 of whom are said to be alive.

Massive demonstrations were held in Tel Aviv on Tuesday to demand an end to the conflict in Gaza and the return of hostages.

The German minister’s schedule was partially interrupted after the Iran-backed Houthi militia fired rockets at Israel, forcing her to seek shelter in her hotel in East Jerusalem as air raid sirens rang out.

She later held talks with the head of the Israeli COGAT occupation authority, Major General Ghassan Alian.

Development projects in the Gaza Strip and West Bank backed by foreign donors must be coordinated with the authority.

The development minister discussed the reports of famine in parts of Gaza, saying it was good that more humanitarian aid is reaching the coastal territory, but stressing that supplies must reach those most in need.

Aid organizations have warned that their operations in Gaza are being restricted by the Israeli military.

A meeting with Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, is also scheduled for Wednesday. He visited the Gaza Strip in July after an attack by the Israeli military on a Catholic church there.

On the first day of her trip, the minister travelled to the West Bank, where she spoke out strongly against settler violence and reiterated the German government’s demand for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of the Israeli hostages.

Alabali Radovan is due to travel on to Jordan and Saudi Arabia for meetings on Thursday.