Freed Israeli Hostage: "Hamas Feared Trump, Hoped Kamala Would Win U.S. Election"

Omer Shem Tov, a 22-year-old Israeli freed after 505 days in Hamas captivity, revealed in a recent CNN interview that his captors hoped Vice President Kamala Harris would win the 2024 U.S. presidential election, fearing President Donald Trump’s return. Captured during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on the Nova music festival, Shem Tov endured starvation and abuse in Gaza’s tunnels, losing 50 pounds. He told CNN’s Bianna Golodryga, “Before we felt like nothing is happening, and I remember ever since Trump came into the role, they were very scared of him.” After Trump’s November 2024 victory, Shem Tov noted a shift: “They wanted Kamala to be elected; but as soon as Donald Trump was elected, they understood that he wants to bring the hostages back home. So, immediately the way they treated me changed.”

Shem Tov described improved treatment post-election, stating, “So if it’s the amount of food I can say this, that when Trump became president, the way they treated us changed, for me, personally. This is what I felt.” He received more food, and his captors “stopped cursing me, stopped spitting on me.” He confirmed intentional starvation, recalling, “I remember me walking by another room in the tunnel and seeing a big amount of food, cheese and bread, huge amounts. So I was being starved. There is no question about it.” When he questioned a captor, he was told food was scarce due to military actions, yet he observed, “I knew they weren’t skinny as me.”

Released on February 22, 2025, with five others during a brief ceasefire, Shem Tov credited Trump, saying, “He got me out, he got the hostages out.” In March, he met Trump at the White House, calling him “sent by God.” CNN’s Dana Bash noted captors seemed to “fatten up” Shem Tov, anticipating his release. Shem Tov now advocates for the 58 remaining hostages, 23 believed alive. He expressed guilt, saying, “Every time I eat, I think about the hostages who aren’t eating. … It’s like they’re choking me.”

Fellow freed hostage Keith Siegel, held with soldier Matan Angrest and father Omri Miran, told CNN, “I think about them every day. … I worry about them and I miss them.” Held together until July 2024, they bonded over music and family. Siegel described Miran’s pain over missing his daughters’ milestones and Angrest’s dreams of watching soccer. Both feared Israeli military operations, with Shem Tov stating, “I believe every soldier is a hero, … but for us, it’s the scariest moments, it’s the bombing.” Siegel added, “I was afraid I’d be killed by one of the kidnappers,” citing Hamas’s execution of six hostages in August 2024. Protests in Tel Aviv on May 28 demanded a ceasefire, reflecting public urgency to free the remaining captives.