Monks pray during the afternoon liturgy at the Simonopetra, or Simonos Petra Monastery, home of the all-male autonomous community Agion Oros, or Holy Mountain, on the peninsula of Mount Athos in northern Greece, April 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
“So we’re just continuing to live in hope that everything will be OK ... even amidst all of the things that are not OK. Because it’s impossible to know,” Bohbot said.Netanyahu said late Wednesday Israel was confident that 21 of the 59 remaining hostages are still alive but that there was “doubt” about three others. An Israeli official said the three, who he did not identify, are considered alive until there is evidence proving otherwise. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details.
Ruhama Bohbot, mother of hostage Elkana Bohbot, has a picture of her son on display at her home in Mevaseret Zion, Israel, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)Ruhama Bohbot, mother of hostage Elkana Bohbot, has a picture of her son on display at her home in Mevaseret Zion, Israel, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)If there is “new information being kept from us, give it to us immediately,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, an advocacy group, said Wednesday.
Hamas militants killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped 251 during their cross-border attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Elkana Bohbot and dozens of others were captured from a music festival, where more than 300 people were killed.Israel’s offensive has killed more than 52,000 people in Gaza, many of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. The officials do not distinguish between combatants and civilians in their count.
A painting of Elkana Bohbot, who was abducted and brought to Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, is hung in his family’s hometown of Mevaseret Zion, Israel, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. Hebrew reads, “There is no price for freedom.” (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)
A painting of Elkana Bohbot, who was abducted and brought to Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, is hung in his family’s hometown of Mevaseret Zion, Israel, Wednesday, May 7, 2025. Hebrew reads, “There is no price for freedom.” (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)The nongovernmental organization’s business account had been blocked. Weeks later, a similar digital blackout struck a collective in Colombia.
Across the Americas, organizations that guide women seekingin various countries are raising alarm, decrying what they see as a new wave of censorship on platforms owned by
— even in countries where abortion is decriminalized. The organizations believe this is due to a combination of changes to Meta policies and attacks by anti-abortion groups that denounce their content.While this also occurs on Instagram and Facebook, the blocking of organizations’ verified WhatsApp business accounts, which they use to communicate with people seeking help, has been particularly disruptive. These accounts are crucial for communicating with people seeking help, and their blockage has significantly complicated daily interactions between women and support providers.