Chuck Schumer Calls On Israeli PM Netanyahu To Make Hostage Negotiation A 'Top Priority'

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During remarks on the Senate floor, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) spoke about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the remaining hostages still in Hamas captivity.

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Transcript

00:00So, Mr. President, later this afternoon, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu will address a joint

00:08meeting of Congress.

00:10It's been 291 days since Israel suffered the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust

00:18at the hands of evil Hamas terrorists.

00:21The pain of October 7th remains fresh because to this day, at least 116 Israeli hostages

00:29remain in captivity, including women, teenagers, the elderly, including American citizens,

00:38including New Yorkers, my constituents.

00:41Yesterday afternoon, I met with some of the families of the hostages, where I reaffirmed

00:47a solemn promise I made months ago and each day since.

00:51I'm doing everything in my power to ensure their loved ones come home safe and sound.

00:57Today is yet another opportunity to fight for just that.

01:02Even though I disagree with many of Bibi Netanyahu's policies, I will attend the speech because

01:08the United States' relationship with Israel remains ironclad and transcends any prime

01:14minister or president, and we must do all we can to get our hostages home.

01:20I told the families of the hostages I will continue supporting the Biden administration

01:26and all negotiators as they push Hamas to agree to a deal that will release the hostages

01:31and bring relief to Gaza.

01:34The negotiators have agreed on a framework, and now is the time to close the deal.

01:40Later today, I will also meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu during a bipartisan, bicameral meeting

01:46of the congressional leadership.

01:48I promised the families I would relay their message directly with the Prime Minister.

01:53Do all you can to bring the hostages home now.

01:58Many of the families I met with yesterday were the very same families I met with during

02:02my trip to Israel just a few days after October 7th, a few days after the October 7th attack

02:10where their loved ones were captured.

02:13I can only imagine what the last eight months have been like for these courageous souls,

02:19not knowing if their loved ones are even alive.

02:23I was particularly glad to meet with some of the families from New York, including the

02:28family of Aitey Chen, who was murdered on October 7th, and whose body is still being

02:35held hostage.

02:36I also met with the family of Omar Nutra, who remains in captivity, and whose family

02:41will be attending the speech as my guests.

02:45Omar was serving as a tank commander near Gaza when he was taken, but back home he had

02:51his whole life ahead of him.

02:53He is a student athlete, a Knicks fan, the captain of his school's basketball team, and

03:00was set to attend Bingham University, one of the finest universities in the country,

03:05after his service.

03:07And there are many, many, just like Omar, who still we need to bring home.

03:16There is simply no time to waste with a deal within reach.

03:21Yesterday, another hostage family member told me the tragic story of her family.

03:27Her mother and brother were both taken captive by Hamas on October 7th.

03:32Today, her mother is home, released in the November hostage deal, but her brother is

03:38dead, murdered in captivity.

03:42As she told me, the difference in fates of her mother and her brother lie at the negotiating

03:48table.

03:49The survival of the hostages depends on closing a deal now.

03:54The Prime Minister must make bringing hostages home a top priority, and I promise the families

04:00that is what I will tell him when we meet this afternoon.

Chuck Schumer Calls On Israeli PM Netanyahu To Make Hostage Negotiation A 'Top Priority'

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