‘His Words Were Inspiring!’ Hostage’s Father Tells CNN Biden Phone Call Made Him ‘Proud to Be An American’

Prof. Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son was taken by Hamas during the terrorist assault on Israel, told CNN that President Joe Biden’s words in a call with families “were inspiring” and made him “proud to be an American.

A White House official told Mediaite Friday that “President Biden participated in a call with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, Undersecretary of State John Bass, National Security Council Coordinator for the Middle East Brett McGurk, and family members of the 14 Americans still unaccounted for following this week’s horrific attacks on Israel.”

On Friday night’s edition of CNN NewsNight, anchor Abby Phillip interviewed Dekel-Chen, and asked him to assess the president’s call. The professor told Phillip he “could not possibly ask for more”:

ABBY PHILLIP: You had this call, though, with President Biden today, one of several families who are represented there. What did the president say? And were you satisfied with what he had to offer to you and the other families?

JONATHAN DEKEL-CHEN: Well, um, I would say, you know, I won’t lie. It was not an easy conversation. And many representatives of the families are, as we can all understand, really upset and looking for answers that really no one can give right now. What I can say about President Biden, who spent about 45 minutes with us, there are about 20 representatives of about 20 families there. As an American citizen, as an Israeli citizen, as someone whose beloved son — we are sure is being held alive, dead, wounded, we don’t know. I could not possibly ask for more than President Biden expressed about United States commitment to getting these people out! And not just the American hostages, but all of the Israeli hostages, and that she and the administration are in this for the long haul.

As crazy as this must sound, and at that moment, as proud as I am to be an Israeli, I was no less proud to be an American as a result of that phone call. And honestly, most of the time, he was listening to people’s stories and and their desires for his action. And his answers were inspiring! Not that he could give us information, because I don’t think there’s much information to give right now. But his willingness to listen, I found it extraordinary, and to empathize with the people who are in enormous pain.

Watch above via CNN NewsNight.

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