CNN
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Several family members of American citizens suspected of having been taken hostage by Hamas had requested to attend a meeting. Hanukkah reception at the White House Monday night but never received any invitations, the father of a missing 19-year-old Israeli-American told CNN.
Ruby Chen, whose son Itay is a reservist who has been missing since the militant group’s Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, said a number of American hostage families were in Washington, D.C., this week and had contacted the White House to request to attend the ceremony. reception but were not invited.
A White House spokesperson declined to comment.
The reception, which celebrated the fifth night of Hanukkah, was attended by some 800 guests, according to the White House, including Holocaust survivors, lawmakers and various Jewish leaders.
Speaking at the event, President Joe Biden touted his administration’s work in trying to secure the release of remaining hostages and deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. He said he spent “probably up to 20 hours” working with his Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian counterparts on both fronts.
“There’s a whole host of things going on that are really, really difficult,” Biden said. “We have freed over 100 hostages and we are not going to stop until we bring every single one of them home.”
According to the White House, seven Americans and one woman are still missing since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. Four Americans – a 4-one year old girl and three women – were released.
After formal hostage negotiations While events in Doha, Qatar, have collapsed, the Biden administration continues to be in close contact with its Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian counterparts on ways to get more hostages out, officials say.
Since the war began, families of missing Americans have had the opportunity to speak or meet with the president, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Vice President Kamala Harris.
But as CNN has previously reported, the apparent lack of progress on this front is fueling families’ anxiety. Some families have called on the White House to consider striking a side deal with Hamas that would focus solely on American hostages, and have even floated the idea of removing the Israeli government from the initial negotiations altogether.
Several families told CNN that while they have felt buoyed so far by the outreach and support of the Biden administration, the Israeli government, in contrast, has been less than engaged.
Biden on Monday also touted what he called “unwavering” support for “the security of the Jewish people and the security of Israel and its right to exist.” But in a stark warning, he stressed that public support could change quickly.
“We will continue to provide military assistance to Israel until it gets rid of Hamas, but we have to be careful — they have to be careful,” Biden said. “World public opinion can change overnight. We cannot let this happen.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Donald Judd contributed to this report.