Einav Tsengaoker, the mother of hostage Matan Tsengaoker, eleased Israeli hostage Ilana Gritzewsky and activists attend a rally calling for the release of Israelis held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, before the meeting of Israeli prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with US President Donald Trump, outside the White House in Washington D.C., February 4, 2025. (Photo: Liri Agami/Flash90)
On Tuesday, several dozen Israelis held a rally outside the White House to advocate for the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza and for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to adhere to the hostage release deal.
Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, along with his girlfriend Ilana Gritzewsky, addressed the crowd prior to Netanyahu’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office.
Zangauker addressed the president and the crowd with a megaphone: “Dear President Trump, I want to personally thank you for your commitment to freeing our hostages and ending the war.”
“I am here as a deeply concerned mother who wants to hold her son again… a mother who expected her prime minister to do everything he can to free Israeli hostages. But instead, he made excuses and favored political considerations [over making a] deal,” she continued.
Ilana Grizevsky in a powerful message: “President Trump, don’t let them be forgotten, don’t let Matan die in the dark” pic.twitter.com/kmXgiHuh3X
— Liza Rozovsky (@lizarozovsky) February 4, 2025
She also called out members of the current ruling coalition who are considering collapsing the Israeli government if the war does not resume after the initial phase of the ceasefire is completed.
“The extremists in the government are trying to sabotage the agreement, but we will not give up and we will not leave a single hostage behind,” she added.
Gritzewsky, who was also held hostage by the Hamas terrorist organization in Gaza and set free in the first release deal in November 2023, addressed the crowd.
“I know what Matan is going through right now – the silence, the helplessness, the terror of waking up every day wondering if today will be the day will we die, or the day the world will forget us.” Since her release, Gritzewsky has donned Matan’s hat every day in solidarity with him and the other remaining hostages.
“President Trump, I know you don’t walk away. I know you don’t stop until the job is done, and that’s why I’m begging you – not as a politician, but as someone who has already shown the world what true leadership looks like: Please don’t stop now,” Gritzewsky implored.
In another plea for assistance from the U.S. president, she said, “If this deal falls apart, the hostages will die. It is not a metaphor. It is true. You know it, I know it, and you are the only one who can stop it from happening. Please, President Trump, don’t let them be forgotten. Don’t let Matan die in darkness. You have already done the impossible. Now I’m begging you – finish what you started.”
