Former US ambassador to Israel Jack Lew has said he struggled to persuade Israeli officials to prioritise the safety of Israeli-American hostages following Hamas’ October 2023 blitz.
“There was no obligation that was greater for an American diplomat than worrying about Americans,” Lew said at a Columbia University event on Wednesday, according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
“While the issue of the hostages was right at the top of my concerns, it was nowhere near the top of the concerns of the interlocutors I had in the government,” he added.
Lew said the Israeli government took advantage of then-US President Joe Biden’s support during the ensuing war, arguing that Washington had limited ability to influence Israel’s conduct because Israeli officials knew Biden was reluctant to significantly reduce US assistance.
“Unless you’re willing to say, ‘Do it our way or we’re going to be leaving you on your own,’ you didn’t have the leverage to make the kind of difference that you would have liked,” Lew said.
Biden “wasn’t going to abandon Israel — there was no credible scenario in which he was going to abandon Israel — and I think that was taken advantage of,” he added.
Israel’s war on Gaza has included excessive air and ground attacks, a siege and a ground offensive since October 2023.
More than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 175,000 injured since then, according to Gaza’s health authorities.
The Israeli army has continued its attacks despite a ceasefire deal that took effect on October 10 2025, with more than 1,460 Palestinians killed and over 5,160 wounded in Israeli violations of the truce, according to the figures provided.
