Pittsburghers react to news of hostage swap, temporary ceasefire in Israel and Gaza

Leaders of Pittsburgh Jewish and Palestinian organizations had mixed reactions to Friday’s start of hostage exchanges and a temporary cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Associated Press reported 13 Israelis, 10 people from Thailand and one person from the Philippines were released Friday, and Israel released 39 Palestinians from prison during the first part of the hostage release.

In all, at least 50 captives from Israel are set to be freed over a four-day truce. Israel is set to free 150 Palestinians over the next four days, as part of the deal.

The AP said the freed Israeli hostages included eight women, six of whom were in their 70s and 80s, and three children. The Palestinian prisoners freed were made up of 24 women, including some convicted of attempted murder for attacks on Israeli forces, and 15 teenagers who were jailed for offenses like throwing stones.

On Friday evening, Rabbi Daniel Fellman of Temple Sinai in Squirrel Hill planned to remove a number of the LED candles from his synagogue’s display honoring the hostages, to represent those who have been released.

He described himself as hopeful about the situation and said he looks for more progress.

“I certainly feel cautious about it, but it’s a wonderful move and a wonderful first start. I hope that it turns into something much more.” he said. “Too many Palestinian people are suffering for sure, too many people in Israel are suffering for sure. This is a helpful first step, but it’s only a first step, and I think most of the people at Temple Sinai would say the same thing.”

Fellman said the last several weeks have been a grueling, difficult time for Israel and for American Jews.

“To see a little beacon of hope of the release of some hostages and a pause in the fighting, all of that is hopeful,” he said.

For Daniel Marcus, executive director of the Hillel Jewish University Center, which works with university students in Pittsburgh, the news is a relief but not the end.

“I am of course relieved for those hostages that are potentially being released, but there are still 200-plus hostages being held captive by Hamas, and until every hostage is returned home, there is no conclusion,” he said.

Brian Eglash, senior vice president and chief development officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, agreed.

“I’m partially relieved about the release of the hostages,” he said. “We still have 227 hostages to go, and we will not be relieved until they’re all home safe. That’s the bottom line — Israel will not rest until they’re released, and they will not rest until Hamas’s capabilities to murder innocent civilians is eliminated, there will be no rest from Israel.”

Calls for cease-fire

Members of the community in Pittsburgh who have been calling for a cease-fire also largely expressed relief about the hostage exchange.

Kate Daher, who is an organizing member of the Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee, said she was glad to hear that hostages were being released. She also wants to see all Palestinian political prisoners released from conditions she described as brutal.

Her outlook on the temporary pause was less optimistic.

“No, I don’t believe a cease-fire will last,” Daher said in an email. “The Israeli Prime Minister has stated that he will not end the assault on Gaza, and plans to continue with the brutal war that has killed and injured over 40,000 people, including upwards of 6,000 children. It’s clear to the world that Israel will not end its genocidal plans.”

On Wednesday, when the hostage release was first announced, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the deal “proves that diplomacy is possible.” Lee has continually advocated for a cease-fire, and previously received some criticism from a group of local rabbis for voting against a resolution that defended Israel.

I welcome, with relief, the return of hostages to their families and pray for the return of all of them.

This deal proves that diplomacy is possible. https://t.co/C6HmniMfQN

— Congresswoman Summer Lee (@RepSummerLee) November 22, 2023

“I welcome, with relief, the return of hostages to their families and pray for the return of all of them,” Lee posted, adding that she would like to see more than a temporary cease-fire.

“With over 14k Palestinians killed, including 5.8k children, and half of Gaza’s infrastructure destroyed, a 5-day pause is simply not enough,” she wrote. “We must keep up the pressure and use this diplomatic opportunity to achieve a permanent cease-fire and just and lasting peace.”

She also promoted on social media a November 16 letter signed by over 150 Jewish community members in Pittsburgh calling for a cease-fire.

“We are in ongoing grief and fear for Palestinians living and dying under suffocating Israeli siege and bombardment. We are still in mourning for Israelis killed on October 7 and civilians taken hostage,” the letter read. “We condemn the indiscriminate killing of civilians, and we long for a world in which there will be no more grieving families.”

Allie Levin, a volunteer chapter leader of the Pittsburgh chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace, a national activist organization that advocates for Palestinians, was one of the letter’s signers.

“This letter was very easy for me to sign,” she said. She agreed with the letter’s support for Lee and for calling a cease-fire.

Levin also noted that a temporary cease-fire is not enough.

“This is not a solution, this is not a permanent solution, this is a circumstance that allows at least a little bit of a relief to the people who are being killed and starved at every moment,” she said.

Levin hopes that people will continue to pay attention to the situation even amidst the hostage release and pause in fighting.

“I’m hoping that people will get more invested in the circumstance, and they won’t turn away,” she said. “I hope that people will take a deeper look at the circumstances of what’s happening here.”

Sam Wasserman is a member of Pittsburgh Jews for Ceasefire, the organization that put together the letter. He signed it, and echoed sentiments of relief for the temporary pause and a continuing desire for a permanent stop to the fighting.

“We know, historically, that violence increases both before and after these temporary pauses,” he said. “We saw that yesterday, with the increased bombardment of Gaza. It does make me a little worried moving forward.”

Wasserman hopes that the exchange of hostages will show that diplomacy works better than military action. The progress of seeing some of the hostages released has been encouraging for family members of his who live in Israel, he said.

“I have been in touch with my friends and family there, and a lot of people view this as a sign that more peace talks and more cooperation are possible,” he said. “Thousands and thousands of people have been protesting the far-right Israeli government for the lack of compassion towards hostages and their families, and they have a renewed sense of strength and a renewed sense of unity. Regardless of what happens the day after the current guidelines, the majority of us will be pushing for a cease-fire, and we will do that until there is a permanent one.”

Wasserman said he had been to Israel a number of times, including during the 2014 Gaza War. He knew people who were impacted then, and even knows someone who died in the October 7 attack.

“That was incredibly difficult,” he said of his friend’s loss. “But we cannot answer one injustice with another.”