Free Republic

Ruby Chen, father of hostage Itay Chen, addressed the United Nations Security Council today during a landmark session on Resolution 2474—the Council’s first formal discussion on missing persons in armed conflict since the October 7 Hamas attacks. Initiated by the United States, the session brought the voices of the families into the heart of the international arena. He called on the Council to establish a dedicated UN body to address hostage-taking as a distinct and ongoing violation of international law, and to ensure the resolution is fully implemented and enforced. In his speech, Ruby gave voice to the collective anguish...

Edan Alexander reunited with his family on Monday at the Re'im Camp in southern Israel after 584 days in Hamas captivity. After a moving hug to his parent's he was surprised by how much his younger brother had grown, and exclaimed: "This kid is a giant, who is he?!" Kan News reported that Edan described being tied hand and foot inside a cage, deprived of daylight, and suffering from extreme hunger in a Hamas-controlled tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip. During his release, Alexander was visibly weakened, struggling to walk due to the toll of prolonged confinement. Lots of pics...

The British terrorist who took four people hostage inside a Texas synagogue ranted about the “f***ing Jews” in the final phone call he made to his family during the siege, a recording obtained exclusively by the JC reveals. In a chilling conversation with his brother in Blackburn from inside the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Malik Faisal Akram, 44, said: "I'm opening the doors for every youngster in England to enter America and f*** with them”. Addressing fellow jihadists, he shouted: “Live your f***ing life bro, you f***ing coward. We’re coming to f***ing America. F*** them if they want...

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters responded to recent reports that Israel may be left out of a wide regional initiative which has the potential to secure the release of hostages. "The government must adopt a comprehensive regional agreement that will transform the Middle East, end the war, and secure the return of all 59 hostages," the Forum responded. "This represents an unprecedented historic missed opportunity. Every citizen should understand tonight that Israel is heading toward 'the missed opportunity of the century.'" The Forum alleged that "the government is acting contrary to President Trump's policy," as well as in...

Going Entebbe on the hostage-taking dictator, right in front of his patron, Vladimir Putin. For Venezuela's fraudulently elected Nicolas Maduro, in Moscow to pay tribute to his patron Vlad Putin, yesterday was kind of embarrassing for both of them. Way under the radar, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been busy, figuring out a way to make both of them look like weaklings, and with perfect timing, he succeeded: The U.S. welcomes the successful rescue of all hostages held by the Maduro regime at the Argentinian Embassy in Caracas. Following a precise operation, all hostages are now safely on U.S....

Screen shots of social media posts One of the winners of this year's Pulitzer Prize - Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha - disputed whether the Bibas family was murdered by their captors and argued that Israeli hostages should not be called hostages. This was first revealed by the watchdog HonestReporting, which also called for Abu Toha's award to be rescinded. .....

This is a sad story which just keeps getting worse. Socialist dictators Nicolas Maduro stole the recent election and seems to be getting away with it despite clear evidence that his opposition opponent Edmundo Gonzalez won by a wide margin. To solidify his rule, Maduro has been cracking down on dissent, jailing hundreds of opposition figures and forcing others to flee the country for their own safety. Last week, his government issued an arrest warrant for Gonzalez himself. In a letter posted on X on Monday, the Prosecutor’s Office said Gonzalez is suspected of “crimes associated with terrorism” including “usurpation...

not only did President Trump get Venezuela to release American hostages, he also got them to agree to take back all their illegal aliens in the United States. Only Trump can get dictators to turn into puppies. ... Trump's accomplished this in 10 days. Absolutely astonishing to see how fast things are moving. Trump has a mission and he understands there is NOT an unlimited amount of time. ... Trump’s ability to negotiate with foreign leaders shows his unique approach to diplomacy, focusing on getting results without traditional concessions. ... The art of the deal.

Venezuelan security forces surrounded the Argentine embassy in the capital Caracas on Friday after two opposition members took refuge inside, according to posts by the opposition duo on social media. The pair joined four other Venezuelan opposition figures who have taken refuge in the embassy this year. One of the men, Pedro Urruchurtu, the international coordinator for opposition leader María Corina Machado, wrote on X that there were patrols of hooded and armed officials surrounding the diplomatic building. The other, former deputy Omar González, also posted on X, writing: “They cut off the electricity service to the Argentine embassy in...

The U.S. welcomes the successful rescue of all hostages held by the Maduro regime at the Argentinian Embassy in Caracas. Following a precise operation, all hostages are now safely on U.S. soil. Maduro's illegitimate regime has undermined Venezuela's institutions, violated human rights, and endangered our regional security. We extend our gratitude to all personnel involved in this operation and to our partners who assisted in securing the safe liberation of these Venezuelan heroes.

Pics of terrorists coming out in nothing but undershirts. A few weeks ago, during an 188th Brigade operation under the command of the 36th Division in Rafah's Shabura neighborhood, a Hamas platoon commander who participated in the October 7th Massacre and was in charge of holding several Israeli hostages, who were released, as well as a commander in Hamas's sniper array, surrendered and were apprehended. Troops found several knives on the terrorists. During the terrorists' interrogation by the Shin Bet, they gave valuable intelligence about the location of significant terrorist infrastructure in the area. A few weeks ago, the IDF...

A senior security source addressed the expansion of the fighting in Gaza, which has been codenamed "Operation Gideon Chariots," and says that the goal will be "to defeat and subdue Hamas in Gaza and release all hostages." According to the source, "In accordance with the plan formulated by the Chief of Staff and the IDF Command and approved by the Minister of Defense and the Prime Minister, the IDF will increase its forces and act forcefully to defeat and subdue Hamas and destroy its military and governmental capabilities, while creating strong pressure for the release of all the hostages. A...

Senior Hamas official Mahmoud al-Mardawi declared that his organization opposes partial agreements that do not include the total end of the war. In an interview with Al Jazeera, al-Mardawi said that Hamas would not agree to return to an escalation after temporary ceasefires. Mardawi accused Prime Minister Netanyahu of...

Hamas has told mediators it will release a number of foreign captives in the coming days, Abu Ubaida, the spokesman of the group's armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, said in a video on its Telegram account on Tuesday (May 3). The Brigades spokesman did not give more details on the number of captives or their nationalities. He also said his group clashed with the Israeli army on three fronts and was able to "kill and injure a number of Israeli soldiers" as well as destroy 22 military vehicles. The unit's navy also used an underwater missile called 'Aasif' for the first...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke via phone on Tuesday with US President Donald Trump, the American leader said, declaring that the pair “are on the same side of every issue.” The call covered “numerous subjects including Trade, Iran, etc.,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, adding that the conversation went “very well.” Notably, Trump did not include Gaza or the 59 hostages being held there in his list of topics discussed amid the ongoing impasse in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas. However, according to a report in Axios, the pair did talk about efforts to reach...

Pic too big. Click to see. GAZA — In a desperate attempt to return to family and friends they haven't seen in over a year and a half, American hostages being held by Hamas reportedly disguised themselves as MS-13 gang members so Democrats would fight to bring them home to the U.S. After being held captive since late 2023 with little sign of their elected officials being motivated to bring them home, sources said the Americans still in the custody of Hamas had devised a clever plan to cover themselves in MS-13 tattoos so congressional Democrats would advocate for them....

Siegel was shot in the hand and his ribs were broken during the Oct. 7 attack. His wounds weren't treated until he was freed more than a year later.He said Hamas also tried to convert him to Islam. https://t.co/klRvGiVqZt— Marc Rod (@marcrod97) April 10, 2025

Russian-American ballerina Ksenia Karelina was released from Kremlin custody in a prisoner swap with the United States on Thursday morning. Karelina was freed in exchange for German-Russian Arthur Petrov at a swap in Abu Dhabi, the Wall Street Journal reported. “American Ksenia Karelina is on a plane back home to the United States,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. “She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release. @POTUS will continue to work for the release of ALL Americans,” he added. The dual-citizen spa worker was accused of treason against the Russian government...

PUTIN henchman and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is "preparing to flee Russia" - as he has put his son in charge of the police. The infamous leader of Chechnya has already made several moves to prepare for his escape - and his efforts have sparked a conflict with Kremlin cronies. The 48-year-old dictator is a vocal supporter of Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin, and has sent tens of thousands of troops to support the bloody war in Ukraine. He has also been accused of violating human rights, including involvement in kidnapping and torture. But relations between Putin and Kadyrov have soured...

An Israel Defense Forces carried out an airstrike on a Gaza hospital on Sunday night, killing the new "Hamas Prime Minister". The militant group has confirmed his death. IDF claimed that Hamas has been exploiting civilian infrastructure like hospitals to hide terrorists. The Gaza health ministry run by Hamas said the strike was targeted at the surgery department of the hospital. Who was Ismail Barhoum? Identified as Ismail Barhoum, the top Hamas official had replaced Issam Da’alis as the "prime minister" of the militant group in Gaza. Barhoum, who was injured in an earlier airstrike, was being treated at the...