On Monday’s broadcast of CNN’s “OutFront,” Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son, Sagui Dekel-Chen, has been held hostage by Hamas, stated that ever since President-Elect Donald Trump vowed “hell to pay” for Hamas if hostages aren’t released by January 20, “There seems to be an urgency on all sides that’s been missing for a very long time to get this done.”
Dekel-Chen said [relevant remarks begin around 40:50] that while the ultimate proof will be how many hostages are returned, “clearly, over the course of the last three weeks, since President-Elect Trump came out with a very strong statement with a deadline of January 20, his inauguration, clearly, all of the sides and the intermediaries Egypt, Qatar, Hamas, and Israel have put into motion a negotiation process that had been stalled for months until that statement. There seems to be an urgency on all sides that’s been missing for a very long time to get this done. It remains to be seen whether or not the intermediaries, the people of Gaza, and other forces can get Hamas leadership to yes. That is the key and the only way that this can move forward.”
He further stated that Trump and Biden officials have been unified on hostage negotiations.
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