Ruby Chen, father of hostage Itay Chen, addressed the United Nations Security Council today during a landmark session on Resolution 2474—the Council’s first formal discussion on missing persons in armed conflict since the October 7 Hamas attacks. Initiated by the United States, the session brought the voices of the families into the heart of the international arena. He called on the Council to establish a dedicated UN body to address hostage-taking as a distinct and ongoing violation of international law, and to ensure the resolution is fully implemented and enforced.

In his speech, Ruby gave voice to the collective anguish of hostage families—especially those whose loved ones were murdered and whose bodies remain in Gaza. Joining him at the session were Itay’s 14-year-old brother Alon, members of the Goldin family, and the Neutra family.

He stated, “We ask the Security Council, in the names of the deceased that do not have a voice, to immediately implement Resolution 2474 with sanctions to those that disobey them. Furthermore, in light of the negotiations going on in Doha, we cannot allow a reality where there will be a new UN resolution declaring an end of war in Gaza without the release of the last hostage, living or deceased."

During the session, Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon told the Council ambassadors: “Hamas has turned the bodies of the murdered into an industry of death. It uses them to negotiate, to bargain, to profit. This is not a mistake – it is a strategy.”

Ambassador Danon demanded: “Implement the decision you made and establish a UN special envoy on the issue of returning the bodies of the kidnapped.”

Ambassador Danon added: “The obligation to return the fallen is an ancient human conscience – not a political gift, not a Western norm, but a universal obligation. In Judaism, Christianity and Islam – burying the dead is a sacred commandment.”