Director Russel met with Aliza Ben-Nun, Head of the MFA's Political Strategic Division, and with the families of the abductees. She clarified that she calls for the unconditional release of all the abductees.
For the first time since the outbreak of the war, Catherine Russell, the Executive Director of UNICEF, the United Nations emergency fund for children, arrived in Israel today (Sunday, 14 April 2024) to take a closer look at the situation that has developed since October 7 and in particular its consequences on children (up to the age of 18) in the region.
Further to the efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the MFA International Organizations Division, Director Russel met with members of the families of abductees: Tomer Keshet, the cousin of Jordan Bibas who is still being held in captivity together with his wife Shiri and their children Kfir and Ariel, Bat Sheva Yahalomi, mother of Eitan Yahalomi who returned from captivity, and her partner Ohad who is currently still in Hamas captivity, Adi Shoham, whose children were released from captivity and whose partner Tal is still in Hamas captivity, and Ella Mor, aunt of 3-year-old Abigail Idan, whose two parents were murdered and she herself was kidnapped to Gaza.
The family members spoke at length of their difficult experiences. They asked Director Russell to initiate and lead an international call for the release of all the abductees, with a special emphasis on the children of the Bibas family who have been held captive by Hamas for over 190 days. At the beginning of the meeting with the family members, Russell, who was moved to tears during the conversation with the family members, made it clear that from the outbreak of events she initiated a call for the unconditional release of all the abductees.
Earlier, Director Russell met with Aliza Ben-Nun, Head of the MFA's Political Strategic Division and, in coordination with the IDF spokesman, she and her team watched the video of the Hamas atrocities. Following her visit, the UNICEF Executive Director is expected to meet with President Yitzhak Herzog and his wife Michal Herzog, who is involved in dealing with the situation of children affected by the October 7 events. She will also hold meetings with organizations working on the issue and will visit the Schneider Medical Center that was responsible for treating many of the children who returned from Hamas captivity.
This is Director Russell’s first visit to Israel. She is considered to be close to Jill Biden, wife of US President Joe Biden, and was supposed to visit Israel about four months ago but was involved in a vehicle accident that prevented her visit. Despite this, she was able to visit the Gaza Strip.