Family members of Israel Defense Forces soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, whose bodies are held by Hamas, call on the government to push forward a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas. The Goldin family said April 29, "There is an opportunity to return our sons Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul and civilians [Avera] Mengistu and [Hisham] al-Sayyad from the hands of Hamas. To miss the opportunity now would be a national irresponsibility."
A day earlier, on the occasion of Israel’s Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged "to continue to work tirelessly in order to return our missing and our prisoners,” naming Goldin and Shaul, as well as the two Israeli civilians Mengistu and Sayyad.