Return of son’s body is a priority, Trump tells Gvili family

The family urged maximum pressure on Hamas ahead of Gaza deal’s next stage.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

US President Donald Trump met Monday with the family of Staff Sgt. Ran Gvili, whose body remains the last Israeli hostage held in the Gaza Strip, and told them that securing its return is a priority for his administration.

“We asked President Trump that just as he returned all the hostages, we also want our Rani home,” the family said in a statement afterward. “We begged him to use all the levers of pressure on Hamas. It is impossible to move to Phase 2 without Hamas playing its full part.”

Phase 1 of the US-brokered cease-fire agreement signed in October required Hamas to release all living and murdered hostages in exchange for an Israeli withdrawal to revised lines that left the terror group in control of roughly 47% of Gaza, along with a sharp increase in humanitarian aid.

Israel has fully complied, with an average of 600-800 trucks of aid entering Gaza daily since the deal was signed.

Under Phase 2, Hamas is expected to disarm under the supervision of an international stabilization force, a technocratic civilian administration excluding the terror group is to be established, and reconstruction is to begin, alongside a further Israeli withdrawal from most of the enclave.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has backed the Gvili family’s position, repeatedly stating that Israel will not advance to the next phase until Hamas fully complies with its initial commitments.

Israeli officials have also stated that they believe the terrorists know the location of Gvili’s remains and are simply stalling.

Asked at a joint press conference with Netanyahu prior to their meeting on Gaza as well as Iran, Trump ducked when asked whether he could “guarantee” that Gvili’s body would be returned before Phase 2 begins.

“We have one wonderful young man whose parents are right now inside,” he answered, calling them and Gvili’s three siblings who had flown in for the meeting “a beautiful family.”

“We’re doing everything we can to get his body back,” he said.

“We received an attentive ear and a willing heart from both leaders,” the family’s statement confirmed.

Earlier Monday, the Gvilis met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Jared Kushner and US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.

In a statement released through the Tikva Forum of hostage families, they described the meeting as “very positive,” saying the Americans emphasized that “the return of Ran is of great importance to President Trump” and that “significant efforts are being made to bring him home.”

Trump has said in recent weeks that he expects Phase 2 to begin “soon,” but on Monday he also warned Hamas that they would have “hell to pay” if they fail to disarm, asserting Israel’s right to enforce demilitarization militarily if necessary.

Hamas leaders, however, have repeatedly declared that they will not relinquish their weapons to any authority short of a sovereign Palestinian state, casting serious doubt on the feasibility of the Trump-led vision for a postwar, rehabilitated Gaza.