Maurice Shnaider, the uncle of Israeli hostage Shiri Bibas, in an interview featured on the cover of Monday's New York Post, called on President Joe Biden to give Hamas an ultimatum to ensure the release of the hostages.
“I want Biden to tell Hamas, to tell Qatar negotiators, ‘Do something, or else,'” the uncle told The Post. “If enough pressure is put on them, then maybe we can finally see something change.”
Shiri, who was taken hostage with her husband, Yarden, and two sons Ariel (4) and Kfir (1), who is the youngest hostage, was seen in footage from October 7th and the first days of the war being taken with her family by Hamas terrorists. Shnaider first learned of his niece's abduction when he saw the initial footage which was shown by news stations around the world on the day of the massacre. “I never want to watch that again,” he said of the footage. “I can’t erase that image from my mind. I just want to remember Shiri’s smiling face.”
Shnaider, a New York native, has been advocating for the release of his niece and the other hostages, attending rallies and meeting with UN officials, but he is becoming wary of politicians. "I'm sick and tired of listening to politicians, UN heads saying, ‘We understand your pain.' No, you don’t. If you did, you would be doing something about it,” he insisted.