President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted freed American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander and his family at the White House on Thursday.
Alexander, who served in the Israeli military, was abducted by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023, and spent 584 days in captivity in Gaza. He was released in May as a "goodwill" gesture by Hamas ahead of Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
Alexander thanked Trump for securing his release from Hamas captivity and said Hamas began treating him better after Trump won the U.S. election last November.
"They moved me to a new place, a good place," Alexander told Trump. "People did everything. They treated me really well."
Trump responded with surprise: "Oh, so they treated you better? Wow."
Steve Witkoff, Trump's envoy to the Middle East, added: "Because you [the president] were coming in – they were afraid of you."
"They weren't too afraid of Biden," Trump said.
Alexander replied with a smile: "No."
"Terrible situation," Trump said. "So right when we won, they treated you better? That's something. Well, we're very proud it helped you."
Edan's father, Adi Alexander, recalled the meeting during an interview with the Israeli news outlet Ynet News.
"It was an excellent meeting that lasted about half an hour," Adi said. "Trump told Edan he was very worried about him because there was a point when contact was lost, and then they were very happy to receive a sign of life. Trump also told him that he's very happy he's now in America, that a bright future lies ahead of him, and that he'll help him with whatever he needs."
Adi said that Trump remains committed to securing the release of the remaining Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
"He said the line he always says when families come to him, both of the living and the fallen: 'We're going to close the deal,'" Adi told Ynet.
Republished with permission from All Israel News