Families of Israeli hostages met with Catholic support during D.C. visit
Family members of Oct. 7 Israeli hostages gather in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, Mar. 11, 2025 / Credit: Madalaine Elhabbal Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 12, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).
Over a dozen family members of Israeli hostages shared the stories of their loved ones in Hamas captivity and asked for continued prayers during an emotional gathering that included several Christian groups in Washington D.C. on Tuesday.
An intimate group of around 20 people attended the panel, including several representatives of the Philos Project, an ecumenical Christian nonprofit organization that advocates for pluralism and Israel’s peaceful existence in the Middle East.
Organized by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Israeli Defense Forces, the panel included family members of Oct. 7 hostages Matan Angrest, 24, Manny Godard, 73, Guy Ilouz, 26, Tamir Nimarodi, 20, Evyatar David, 24, Idan Shvtivi, 28, Rom Brasvlavski, 21, and Omri Miran, 47.
“We are living for more than 16 months with a big hole in our heart,” said Ilan Dalal, whose son Guy Gilboa-Dilal was taken from the Nova Music Festival by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 and is believed to be among the 24 remaining live hostages.
Thirty-five hostages in Gaza are presumed dead. “We are going from place to place, and I am trying to talk to everybody that’s willing to listen and trying to achieve the goal that all the hostages will be free, and until then, we will not rest,” Dalal said.
“Everything [has become] an issue of interest, a political interest, in this world,” said Michel Ilouz, whose son Guy Ilouz is now known to have died in the tunnels under Gaza from injuries he sustained on Oct. 7 when Hamas militants shot and abducted him at the Nova festival.
“When I educated my oldest son, I always tried … to educate him, to be in the right place, and to have the right values, and always try to stand behind the truth about what is right and what is wrong,” Ilouz said, adding: “This is wrong.”
During his testimony, Ilouz played a recording of the last phone call he had with his son on Oct. 7, which featured the sounds of machine gun bullets and his son repeating the phrase “Father, I love you,” in Hebrew.
“I remember I told him, ‘Guy don’t dare you, don’t dare you try to separate from us, please,’” Ilouz said. “And then everything finished.”
Reports of Guy’s death did not surface until January. Ilouz told the small gathering on Tuesday that he does not care if his son’s body comes back last, so long as a negotiation for the release of all hostages is achieved somehow.
During his testimony, Eli Shvtivi stood from his seat on the panel and walked in front of the table as he spoke in a mixture of English and Hebrew of his son, Idam Shtivi, who he said had gone to the Nova Music Festival “for peace and love.”
Shvtivi explained that his son did not have a gun, and was “a good person.” He then held up his phone with a video depicting his son being shot in the head four times and killed by Hamas before he was dragged into the Gaza Strip.
“I don’t know what to do now,” Shvtivi said, sitting back down.
Naama Miran recounted the story of her brother Omri Miran’s abduction from Nahal Oz, a kibbutz at the southern Israeli border, which took place in front of his wife and two young daughters. She said Omri’s wife, Ishael, managed to tell him three things before he was taken away: “I love you, I’ll take care of the girls, and don’t be a hero.”
“Every time that I fly with this group of families, I feel how strongly this family is connected,” Naama said, describing the other family members as a “support group.”
“But I can see also the suffering and the pain and how it gets harder each time, and every day,” she added.
Each family member urged those in attendance to utilize any connections with elected officials or the Trump administration to advocate for their loved ones.
At the end of the panel, Philos Catholic Director Simone Rizkallah addressed each of the family members assuring them of prayers and support from the Catholic community.
Rizkallah, who is behind the launch of the Coalition of Catholics Against Antisemitism, hosts the Beyond Rome podcast and is of Armenian-Egyptian descent.
“There’s so much love and support for you from our community, and I wanted you to know that we’re doing everything we can to educate so many Catholics who have no idea of our history, but they’re open to learning and educating and spreading awareness,” she said.
She noted the thousands of Catholics who signed up to pray novenas for Israel through the Avila Foundation and on the Hallow app.
“This is what we’re praying for,” she said, adding: “There’s more people who are supporting you than you even are aware of, and certainly in the Catholic community.”
