Israel Minister Officially Asks UN to Deliver Wine, Matza to Israeli Hostages in Gaza - Israel News - Haaretz.com
An Israeli minister has sent an official letter to a senior UN official asking the Israeli hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas be provided with wine and matza for the Passover holiday.
"Unfortunately, not all of the People of Israel will be able to celebrate the Seder," Jerusalem Affairs Minister Meir Porush, of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, wrote in Hebrew.
Porush's letter is sent as indirect hostage talks between Israel and Hamas have reached an apparent impasse, with the organization's response to the latest U.S. proposal.
"We are all working as hard as we can. And are praying constantly to God, that we will be able to free all of them in the days left until the holiday," the letter continued. It was addressed to UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, Tor Wennesland.
Families of hostages call for the immediate release of hostages, in Tel Aviv.Credit: Alexandre Meneghini / Reuters
However, added Porush, if the hostage release fails to materialize before Passover, "we adamantly demand that [the UN] takes steps to deliver matzos and wine to the hostages, so that they can mark the holiday – even symbolically."
These amenities, he said, could "lift their spirits and allow them to survive in their difficult conditions. "This is a basic humanitarian demand," Porush concluded.