Imagine seeing your worst nightmare come true. You see your child dying right in front of your eyes. You see him gaunt and frail. Sobbing, crying his heart out, withering away, tortured, starved to death, shouting for help, and you can’t do anything. Absolutely nothing.
How would you feel? What would you do? How could you sleep?
I can tell you firsthand, the feeling is unbearable. It drives you crazy. It drives you mad. That fierce sense of helplessness, witnessing this horror unfold before your eyes, and yet there’s nothing you can do.
My son is a hostage. His name is Rom Braslavski. He is 22 years old, and as I write these words, he has been held captive by Islamic Jihad in Gaza for 670 days. Rom is in hell. I am a father in hell.
FREED AMERICAN-ISRAELI HOSTAGE DETAILS STARVATION AND ABUSE BY HAMAS AS FAMILIES PUSH TRUMP FOR DEAL
This screengrab from a video released on July 31 by Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian terrorist group Islamic Jihad, shows a hostage, identified as Rom Braslavski by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, who was abducted to Gaza in October 2023 during the attack that sparked the Gaza war. Israel said on August 3 the plight of hostages held in Gaza should top the global agenda, after Palestinian terrorists released videos showing them looking emaciated, heightening fears for their lives after nearly 22 months in captivity. (Photo by Islamic Jihad Media Office / AFP) / ATTN (Photo by -/Islamic Jihad Media Office/AFP via Getty Images) (/Islamic Jihad Media Office/AFP via Getty Images)
On October 7, 2023, the darkest day in Israel’s history, Rom was working as a security guard at the Nova music festival. When the terrorists attacked, Rom could have fled to save himself. Instead, he chose to stay. He stayed to treat the wounded, evacuate the injured, shelter the terrified, and did his best to somehow preserve dignity amid chaos.
Last Thursday, Islamic Jihad released a horrifying propaganda video. What I saw shattered me: my son—on the verge of death, visibly suffering, crying and begging for his life. I didn’t recognize him. He was so weak, so emaciated. His voice was frail, and his eyes were hollow and empty — as if he was about to give up. I know it’s hard to believe, but this was the first time I ever saw my son cry. Really cry.
Four months ago, Islamic Jihad released another video of Rom. He looked terrible even then — but at least there was still something in his eyes. A glimmer of hope. A belief that he might still get out. In this latest harrowing footage, that spark is gone. His eyes are turned off. He looks like he is waiting for death. This is not a metaphor. It’s a father watching his child die in real time.
Rom Braslavski, seen here with his father, Ofir, during happier times, was kidnapped by Islamic Jihad terrorists at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023. (The Hostages and Missing Families Forum)
Rom was always strong - the kind of kid who made people feel safe. Now, he is barely recognizable, a victim of psychological and physical torture. This is not the son I raised. This is a boy who has been broken.
Those terrorists who hold my son and so many others claim they give hostages the same food their own fighters receive. But in the video, you can clearly see the captors are well fed, and they are deliberately starving my boy. This hunger is on purpose — you can see that.
Mr. President Trump, I turn to you - not as a diplomat or a politician, but as a father desperate for action.
You know what it means to protect your family. You’ve shown strength where others waver. You have spoken of truth without compromise. You understand that moral clarity comes above all. You know what evil looks like — and you’ve never hesitated to name it. I ask you:
Use your power, your influence, and your leadership to demand the immediate release of all 50 hostages still held in Gaza.
Ofir Braslavski shows a video from terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, published last week of his son Rom, gaunt and emaciated in captivity in Gaza. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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This is not only an Israeli tragedy — it is a global test of conscience. What Hamas did on October 7 through mass murder, rape and abduction was more than terror — it was an assault on civilization itself.
President Trump, my son does not have time. Every day that nothing changes is another day he may not survive. We are out of time. We need to get him food and medical attention, and we need to get him out of hell.
We need to get them all out of hell. One deal. No phases. No conditions. No silence.
Please don’t let the light in Rom’s eyes go out forever.