US special envoy Steve Witkoff’s speech in Tel Aviv on Saturday was marred by an angry crowd and a clumsy delivery.
Witkoff was joined by Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner – who hold no official position in the Trump administration – for a speech marking the expected release of the 20 hostages believed to be still alive in Gaza.
Witkoff’s victory speech was derailed, however, when the crowd wildly booed the mention of key Trump ally and Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Let me just finish my thought…guys, let me just finish my thought,” Witkoff pleaded as attendees expressed their contempt for the Israeli leader.
The crowd’s fury lasted more than a minute, and when he spoke, Witkoff stumbled over the prime minister’s name.
“To Prime Minister Benjin Nahu…” Witkoff said. “I was in the trenches with the Prime Minister. Believe me, he played a very important role here.”
The rally, expected to bring together up to 400,000 people, was organized by the families of the hostages at Hostage Square, in anticipation of the release of the remaining hostages taken by Hamas militants on October 7, 2023.
The Trump administration is credited with orchestrating a peace deal between Israel and Hamas after two years of intense conflict in the Gaza territory. A ceasefire has been in effect since Friday, with Palestinians returning to the rubble-strewn region and aid expected to be allowed in.
Netanyahu’s popularity has declined since the start of the conflict, with polls consistently showing that a majority of Israelis have little confidence in his far-right coalition government.
The families of hostages taken by Hamas have been a large and vocal force in Israeli politics over the past two years, with many accusing Netanyahu of prioritizing his own political survival through the continuation of the war over the safety of their loved ones.
Ivanka and Jared also addressed the crowd, with Ivanka saying the return of the hostages is a “triumph of faith, courage and our common humanity.”
“The president wanted me to share, as he did personally with many of you, that he sees you, that he hears you, that he is always with you,” she said on behalf of her father.
Kushner, who appeared to smile as Witkoff was booed, said he “couldn’t be more proud to be a friend of Israel.”
“Instead of reproducing the barbarity of the enemy, you have chosen to be exceptional, you have chosen to defend the values that you defend,” he declared.
Witkoff has a background in real estate and has a close personal relationship with Trump. He had no prior diplomatic experience before his appointment as special envoy to the Middle East.
Kushner and Ivanka, who held formal advisory roles to the president during Trump’s first term, worked as informal advisers, including to Witkoff.
Kushner is currently CEO of the private equity firm Affinity Partners, which he founded in 2021 and which has secured billions of dollars in funding from Gulf Arab countries, primarily Saudi Arabia.
Several international organizations, including the United Nations, have described Israeli actions in Gaza over the past two years as genocide.
Since the start of the conflict, 2.1 million Palestinians have been displaced, while Gaza’s health ministry says more than 168,000 people have been injured and more than 67,000 killed.