Israelis gathered for slihot prayers dedicated to the 50 hostages held in Gaza at the Western Wall on Monday night, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum announced on Tuesday.
The prayer was held with the participation of Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, rabbi of the Western Wall and the Holy Sites, as well as captivity survivors and families of hostages.
“690 days of forgiveness – forgive us that you are not yet with us – join us in one shared prayer for your return,” the forum’s statement read.
Additionally, former hostage Keith Siegel addressed US President Donald Trump in a video statement from the Western Wall, where he urged the president to reach a deal.
“President Trump, I am standing here in Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, the holiest place on earth for the Jewish people, at the Western Wall, where tens of thousands of people have gathered tonight to pray for the safe return of all of the hostages – the hostages that are alive and the deceased hostages.”
Siegel thanks Trump for securing his release, urges president to push deal for remaining hostages
In his statement, Siegel thanked Trump for pushing through on the agreement to bring him home, adding, “I am standing here because you brought me home... I am eternally grateful to you for that.”
Siegel called on the US president to “bring an agreement together with Israel, the Israeli government. I trust that you can reach an agreement that will bring all of the 50 hostages home as soon as possible. Thank you.”
Siegel was abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza along with his wife, Aviva Siegel, on October 7. Aviva was released during the November 2023 ceasefire, while Siegel was held in Hamas captivity for 484 days before his release in a deal brokered earlier this year.
Thousands of others came to the Western Wall for the first day of slihot – prayers and liturgical poems recited in Jewish tradition, most prominently around the High Holy Days. Sephardi Jews say slihot during the whole month of Elul, which began on Monday, leading up to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.