RUBY CHEN: My son is home from Gaza, but our fight is not over

After 759 days of anguish and agonizing uncertainty, my lad Itay has yet been returned to america from captivity successful Gaza. Since helium was abducted connected Oct. 7, 2023, bringing him location has been each I and my household person dreamt of. 

We prayed for a antithetic ending, 1 wherever my lad would locomotion done the doorway alive. We prayed for a instrumentality wherever we could perceive his dependable again, laughter with him, and clasp him. But that is not the world we are facing.

We volition hide Itay successful the coming days, and erstwhile his assemblage is laid to rest, our hearts volition interruption erstwhile again. They volition interruption successful ways they person not breached since that time erstwhile Itay, on with different members of his vessel crew, fought and died arsenic heroes, redeeming countless lives with their bravery. Only 1 of their crew, Matan, survived, and thankfully, pursuing implicit 2 years successful captivity, helium is erstwhile again successful his home, embraced by his family. We had hoped for a akin miracle, but it was not to be. 

FROM OCT 7 CAPTIVITY TO FREEDOM: PRESIDENT TRUMP SAVED ME — AND I BELIEVE HE CAN FREE THE REMAINING HOSTAGES

Ruby Chen's son, IDF Sergeant Itay Chen, was serving on the Gaza borderline erstwhile helium was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists connected Oct. 7. (IDF)

Having Itay returned for burial successful Israel has been unfathomably painful, but nevertheless, merciful. For arsenic agelong arsenic Itay remained successful captivity successful Gaza, we person been incapable to mourn, to grieve, to determination forward, and hopefully, to instrumentality to life. 

I americium incredibly grateful to the U.S. medication for its unwavering committedness to securing the merchandise of the hostages. Their enactment and condemnation ensured that we did not hold indefinitely for the instrumentality of our loved ones. Without this governmental will, without their intervention, we would person been near with much unanswered questions and much regular agony. We would ne'er person been capable to genuinely mourn. 

But adjacent arsenic we mourn, we cannot hide the families inactive waiting.

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American Israeli, Itay Chen (left) with his household earlier helium was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. (The Chen family)

Even with Itay’s instrumentality and our idiosyncratic closure, the symptom is acold from implicit for the families whose loved ones stay behind. There are inactive six families waiting for their loved ones to beryllium returned from Gaza. We cannot determination on. We cannot adjacent this chapter. For them, the nightmare is acold from finished. For these families, and for each of us, the warfare is not over. Our combat is not complete. We cannot remainder until each past hostage is home. 

The nonaccomplishment of those murdered connected that dark, acheronian time of Oct. 7, on with the horrible toll of the warfare that followed, has shattered truthful many. But we cognize that from this heavy tragedy, we indispensable physique thing stronger. I commune that the eventual sacrifice of truthful many, including Itay, volition not beryllium forgotten, and that it volition propulsion america towards a aboriginal of unity and healing for the radical of Israel.

This is simply a turning constituent for our nation. Israel cannot simply instrumentality to concern arsenic usual, to petty politics, to rhetoric, to fights betwixt ourselves and our neighbors. We indispensable rebuild not lone our country, but besides our consciousness of togetherness. We indispensable rebuild the tone of Israel, a tone wherever unity is our existent strength. We indispensable rebuild successful the representation and successful the grant of each those we person lost. We beryllium it to them to bash our utmost to extremity this never-ending rhythm of unit with our neighbors, for a amended aboriginal for each of our children. 

President Donald Trump announced an statement betwixt Israel and Hamas to merchandise the hostages. (Leon Neal/Getty; Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty)

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We are astatine a crossroads. The Israeli radical person been tested by grief. The aboriginal of Israel depends connected the enactment that emerges from this crisis. We present request leaders who volition unite us, who volition bring healing and restoration. 

As I hide my son, I take to judge that his sacrifice and the sacrifice of truthful galore others volition pb to thing greater, to an Israel agreed arsenic ne'er before, wherever we basal unneurotic successful the look of this unspeakable tragedy, wherever we strive for a amended state and a amended region, and wherever we committedness ne'er to permission anyone down again.

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