image shared by He suggested showing a photo of former President Donald Trump next to hostages rescued from Gaza.
Maybe there's a kidnapped kid standing next to him, so he's laughing, this crazy waste of oxygen. pic.twitter.com/drbKeiTe1s
— 🇺🇸 MAGAMichelle S🇺🇸 (@MAGAMichelleS69) October 21, 2024
Verdict: Misleading
The boy in the photo is not the hostage himself, but the brother of a young man still held by Hamas.
Fact check:
On October 7, President Trump attended an event commemorating the lives lost in the massacre by Hamas militants. Associated Press reported The former president reportedly visited the grave of the Lubavitch Rebbe, the rabbi who led the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
a Post to X describes a photo from the event as showing President Trump next to hostages rescued from the ongoing Israeli-Hamas war.
one post From actor Mark Hamill: “Is there anyone out there who smiles happily while holding a photo of a kidnap victim?'' (Related: Image claims that Israel is bombing Al-Qad Al-Hassan Foundation Association)
Who smiles happily while holding a photo of a kidnapping victim?
This is not a thumbs up towards a tombstone, but I can't help but wonder what kind of expression the hostage's parents had when they saw this image.
The man is in serious mental health trouble.#weirdAF pic.twitter.com/G4b8y2lccU— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) October 21, 2024
However, the boy in the photo is the younger brother of hostage Edan Alexander, who is still being held captive. The false statement claims that President Trump is smiling in the photo because “an abducted child is standing next to him.” An accompanying image shows Trump, family members of the hostages and several others smiling for the camera.
Alexander is one of four American citizens still being held by Hamas, the report said. fox news. The other three are 65-year-old Keith Siegel, 36-year-old Sagui Deker-Chen, and 22-year-old Omer Neutra. At the time of Hamas-led massacres and kidnappings, era of israel Alexander was born in Israel but grew up in New Jersey, he reported.
as pointed out by newsweekthe photo Hamill shared has been cropped to only show a poster of the former president and Alexander. The big picture—Share via X Footage from the Israel Heritage Foundation on October 8 shows Trump posing for a photo with Alexander's brother Roy and his parents Adi and Yael. Family members of the hostages also smile for the camera.
