Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finally crossed the gates of Kibbutz Nir Oz on Thursday, 636 days after Hamas terrorists ravaged the community on October 7, 2023, murdering 69 residents and kidnapping 76 more. He was greeted not with applause but with placards that read, “Murderer,” and chants that echoed the survivors’ anger at the long wait for empathy from their own leader.
The kibbutz had invited the prime minister repeatedly. Each time he declined, survivors rebuilt their shattered homes, buried loved ones, and campaigned for the return of nine neighbors who are still in Gaza. Thursday’s visit, filmed by the Prime Minister’s Office and accompanied by a whole media entourage, could have happened months ago. Better late than never, but far worse than on time.
In recent weeks, Netanyahu has suddenly found time for the public he largely avoided for almost two years. He praised Mossad agents for Israel’s surprise strike that neutralized Iran’s nuclear breakout infrastructure, telling them the victory “opens the door” to bringing the hostages home. He held news conferences and even granted another friendly interview to Channel 14, a station whose softball questions rarely ruffle his talking points.
The timing is no mystery. On July 7, he will stand beside US President Donald Trump in the White House, eager to showcase momentum on three fronts: quiet on the Iranian front, a looming Gaza ceasefire, and progress, at least in optics, toward a comprehensive hostage deal.
Inside the Likud, advisers argue that a defiant, camera-ready premier who “delivered against Iran” and “cares for the families” will blunt domestic critics and impress US voters who still see him as Israel’s indispensable defender.
Optics, however, do not free captives. At Nir Oz, Netanyahu met the mother of 24-year-old hostage Matan Zangauker, Einav Zangauker, whose televised embrace of the prime minister’s wife delivered a made-for-TV symbol of reconciliation.
But Zangauker has warned that any deal that leaves even one hostage behind “will haunt Israel for generations.” Her plea matches the Hostages and Missing Families Forum’s demand for a single, comprehensive agreement rather than the piecemeal swaps floated in recent negotiations.
Netanyahu must prioritize hostages in ceasefire deal
If Netanyahu’s belated pilgrimage to the Gaza periphery communities means anything, it must be that those voices now shape his agenda, not just his social-media feed.
That starts with two concrete steps: Commit publicly to a “no one left behind” deal. The forum fears a partial agreement that trades one category of hostages for another round of fighting. In addition, he should declassify the current negotiating framework. Israeli society cannot judge success or failure without understanding what Israel has already put on the table. Limited transparency would force Hamas, Qatar, and Egypt to respond to terms that the Israeli public can see.
The anger on Nir Oz’s access road was not only about hostages. Residents remember that during the October 7 massacre, the IDF reached almost every western Negev community except theirs. Their message to the prime minister was clear: Leadership means showing up when it matters, not when television cameras guarantee sympathetic framing.
That leadership test will follow Netanyahu to Washington. Trump’s team hopes to finalize a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza before the White House meeting, but Hamas insists on an Israeli withdrawal the cabinet still rejects. If the prime minister intends to end the war “while Israel is the strong one,” as his aides say, he must prove it by doing in the diplomatic arena what he did not do in Nir Oz for 21 months: Listen first, and speak later.
Israel did survive – militarily, economically, and diplomatically – the twin wars with Hamas and Iran. Yet survival was supposed to be the baseline, not the benchmark. Nir Oz reminds the country that victory is hollow if the captives remain, if communities stay in ruins, and if the national conversation sinks into photo-op politics.
Therefore, we urge Netanyahu to capitalize on the momentum he has built, if it is late, and turn it into action: Prioritize the captives as the first item on the agenda in every US meeting next week, before Iran or tariffs.
Additionally, within 30 days, return to Nir Oz to personally report on the improvements that have been made. And finally, hold an open press conference with all Israeli media outlets upon his return, with no screened questions and no partisan exclusives.
Only sustained engagement can transform Thursday’s long-overdue visit from an awkward box-checking exercise into an authentic turning point. The families of Nir Oz and the entire country deserve nothing less.